In Exchange For A Miracle
by CrafterofTales
Summary: In the land of Amestris; conspiracy, corruption, and a war in secret stirs within the vicinity of Alchemists and Magi. A Ruler-class Servant comes as the mediator of the war for the Holy Grail, and her meeting with the Fullmetal Alchemist defines the fates that theirs, and others, have intertwined.
1. Ruler in Liore

Chapter 1: Ruler in Liore

 **...CONSTRUCTING FIGURE. PROCESSING CLASS: SERVANT RULER. IMPLANTING CONSCIOUSNESS. MEMORY OF _.**

A giant gate with towering pillars in between, golden energy spiraled around it. A strange picture resembling a tree marked upon the tablet-like doors. A white figure sat beside it.

 **"Another one huh?"** The white figure spoke. **"Oh. You're just like him then. I hope you'll be just as interesting. Go right on ahead! I can't wait to see how this blows up."**

The gate opens, and all went white.

 **INITIATING SUMMARIZATION OF THE WORLD.**

A tsunami of information swarms the mind of what can only be described as a "spirit." Introduced with visual live feed of the world she will soon arrive to. She has been given her identity, ultimately, she is this figure. She held the memories of her life up to her demise. No regrets, even if her ending was sad. Her position is clear. She will act as it is requested. She will be neutral in her role, and she will uphold order.

The understanding of the world, though complex, was simple enough to grasp by the word if not the meaning, and with ease, she was able to determine that this world was not her home, she is in an entirely different dimension.

 _"-Alchemy: the science of understanding, deconstructing, and reconstructing matter. However, it is not an all-powerful art. It is impossible to create something out of nothing. If one wishes to obtain something, something of equal value must be given. This is the law of equivalent exchange; the basis of all alchemy. In accordance to this law, there is a taboo among alchemists. Human transmutation is strictly forbidden. For what could equal the value of a human soul?"_

 **INITIATING SEARCH.**

The entire world is shown.

 **SEARCHING…**

A destination is pinpointed within a country; the country name Amestris.

 **SEARCH COMPLETE. COMPATIBILITY: 92%. PHYSICAL CAPABILITIES: ACCEPTABLE. SPIRITUAL STRENGTH: ACCEPTABLE. PERSONALITY: ADJUSTABLE. APPEARANCE: ADJUSTABLE.**

 **HOST CONFIRMED. BEGIN CONTACT.**

* * *

The city of Liore is bustled with warm-welcomed folks, living normal lives and the majority of all following the faith of Letoism, dedicated to worshipping the Sun God Leto for his promised gift of miracles. A large church resigns at the center of Liore, a castle-like structure that towers over houses not only for its size, but the air of holiness vast enough to swarm the heart of the faithful with glee the moment they step inside.

Of course, such blind adoration is enough to fool the unquestionable.

That is the circumstance of one girl. Her name is Rose Thomas. Her bangs strawberry pink, and black locks of hair falling over her shoulders. Eyes closed to focus her thoughts alone, she knelt in plea with her hands clasped together, in front of an altar with a figure of an old man holding up the staff of the sun stationed there; representing Leto. A round window of painted glass above him, the ray of daylight mixing with colors of the fragile artwork enters the room, showering Rose as if to comfort her in her usual moment of hopeful requests that carries subdued lament.

"Please, bring him back to me..." She prayed, her voice soft and her tone faint with anticipation, akin to desperation. It hadn't been long since the death of her fiancé. At the time of the tragic event, Rose's spirit had crumbled, she had believed she could never piece herself back together. Her anguish too great and her grief pulling her broken heart apart and scattering them. She would have lay on the ground as if she were dead were it not for Father Cornello. Her rescuer who revealed her his proof of miracles.

His power was first speculated as Alchemy, a mystical science with logical means that does not rely on a powerful living force, common in Amestris, but he promises that it was no such thing, that his work is a gift from God and that his ability is limitless. Rose needn't an explanation(although science is not her strong suit to begin with so she would not know the difference), she believed it was true Miracles at the works, and when he promises to return her lover back to life, she latched onto his offered hand instantaneously. A light in the cold darkness of her heart, she had reason to live again.

So long as she prays to Leto continuously, so long as she believes in Father Cornello, then one day she will see her lover again. Ask and you shall receive the priest swore.

There were no winds in the church. All the windows and doors were closed, so it was a startle for Rose to hear the chimes of the bells hanging near the altar tap against each other, moved by an unseen force. A light, aimless music that quickly faded as it begun, and a strange sensation tickled her skin.

"Is someone there?" Rose pressed her hands against her chest. Remaining her position, she looks at the entire room. No one was here, and yet, something definitely is. Her eyes return upon the statue. This sensation tells her that something was there, in front of her.

 _"Don't be afraid."_

What she perceived as the statue itself speaking, Rose sharply intakes a breath. She controlled the fright in her beating heart and stared, stunned. Had her prayers finally been heard?

"Are you an angel? Or...are you the Sun God Leto?" She questioned, hardly containing her joy. This was it! Father Cornello was right! She will see her lover again!

 _"No,"_ the invisible guest gently said.

Rose growing smile quickly died. "What? Then, who are you?" Fear and doubt came to her, but she held herself strong in order to listen from this spirit. Whoever this is, surely there is a reason why she is being spoken to, and this voice was calm, nothing that tells the faithful teen is in danger.

 _"I am not an Angel. Nor am I this...Leto,"_ the voice that was undoubtedly female had a certain tone as if the name Leto was strange, which confused the dedicated follower. "I am a spirit of a sort. I've come to you because I need your help."

A spirit asking for her help? Oh my...

The spirit began to explain, _"There is a war waiting to commence, a war between Masters and Heroes."_

Rose listened to the spirit's entire explanation. Her story was fantastical and terrifying. A war in secret, all for a miracle in the form called the Holy Grail. It was surreal but Rose could not doubt, surely this must be a test sent by God, to see how strong her resolve was. She must listen if she wishes to prove herself as a dedicated follower, and then, she must hear whatever it is the spirit needed her with.

 _"I as the mediator must uphold order for the war, and see to it that its progress will be done properly. However, for whatever reason, I cannot physically form into this world, I need a body."_ The spirit was troubled, by her voice she must be frowning, _"What I am asking is nothing to take light of. In order for me to exist on this plane, I ask for us to combine."_

"Combine?" Rose presses for further elaboration, genuine confusion as oppose to suspicion.

The spirit hesitated before finally saying, _"I need your body. By accepting me, I will take control and move on my own using your limbs. You will be safe, I promise you. Even if I were killed, your body will remain unharmed and will be instantly transported to safety."_

Rose looked to her knees in thought, the weight of the request was nothing to take light of. This spirit is asking to take possession of her, the thought of it was frightening and yet, how could she say no? She's been asked for help by a being from heaven, not to mention, this may be her only chance for her deceased boyfriend to return. Wouldn't giving herself to this spirit be enough for her to be rewarded? She only needed a moment to comprehend everything she had been told. In the end, she made her decision. "I understand."

 _"Then..."_

Rose lifts her head, an adoring smile complementing her features, "Yes...I will help you." If this is the will of God, a testament of Rose's conviction by allowing this spirit to take possession, she will accept her without question. Even though this may seem unconventional, such thoughts did not worry the faithful girl, she is sure that her total devotion will have her reunite with her loved one. "Use me as you will."

The complete faith this girl released was admirable, the spirit smiled. Rose quietly gasped when she felt warmth surrounding her clasped hands as if someone holds them. It was soft, somewhat firm, but very comforting. The girl steeled her heart, determined to face through this with bravery.

 _"What is your name?"_ The spirit asked while testing to see how willing the girl is to let her in. She will not force her, and she will be gentle.

"Rose Thomas." Warmth spreads throughout every fiber of the girl's being as the spirit slowly takes over, it was something that can be mistaken as immense joy and enlightenment, it was holy-like though as the spirit had said she was not a divine being.

Rose would call her as someone pure. A girl who fought for what she believes in. "What about you?"

As the merge between them continues, light as bright as the sun blinded her but it was not painful, and through this light she saw the face of the spirit. She looked around the same age as Rose, but with hair blonde like the golden sun, yet humble in tone. Ruffled loose bangs with her long hair tied in a single thick braid. Her eyes like a pair of aquamarine with a soft violet tint.

The spirit smiles, her pale hand outstretched, offered for Rose to take like an angel reaching out for the meek. The devoted girl grasped it with eagerness, thus their contract and her permission to be a host official.

 _"I am Jeanne D'Arc."_

* * *

The doors of the church opens, a rhythm of an armor shifting as it moved resounds the room, and simple footsteps in boots that walked beside the louder person. This was not the first time the newcomers had ever been to a church, it was however the first time they entered this place in Liore. Travelers would be the common assumption for who these two people were, but there is more to them than what they may openly reveal, for they concealed their tragic past well.

The Fullmetal Alchemist Edward Elric, and his Fullbody Armored brother Alphonse enters the scene.

They were here on a possible lead for their personal mission, with one brother a State Alchemist - a form of authority with alchemy abilities to manipulate matter and one who will act when an injustice occur. Not that the golden eye boy care much for just righteousness, he has his own goal, and being a State Alchemist helps him on his quest along with his brother. Through their journey they dealt with corrupt figures, illegal experiments, and fought wanted criminals. They were the youngest pair ever to assist the military, even for being in their teen years, they were still children.

Walking further inside the room of gray walls made from stone, the polished floor made of marble, sturdier than glass. Two rows of benches lined up towards the end, where the large statue of Leto stands. A girl is found kneeling before the altar, her dark hair reaching pass her waist, the edge of her strands gilded.

"So this is Leto?" Edward announced their presence.

Calmly, the girl looked behind her. She was a young woman, appearing to be around sixteen years of age. Her ruffled pink bangs held a blonde tint. Her eyes like a pair of gems dipped in the sea, a hint of lavender petal floats in them. There was a beauty about her that speaks humility and naivety, yet held an understanding with the world and experience that combats with this.

"Oh, hello." The girl stood up, greeting the brothers with a friendly smile, "Is there something I can help you with?"

"We're looking for Father Cornello," Edward explained, "Can you take us to him?"

"Father Cornello..." She repeated the name, as if unsure who this person was, which would have been strange since she is here in the Church of Leto, and practically everyone in Liore knows of the "priest." Her eyes lit up in recollection, "Oh yes. He should be in his office."

 _Take the door ten feet away from you. Down the hall you will reach another room, then take the stairs._

Silently grateful of the memories belonging to Rose, the girl now known as Jeanne steps down from the altar, "Please follow me."

The brothers did. As they follow the girl down a new hall, Edward studied her in mild curiosity.

"Are you a follower?" He presumes to question.

Jeanne took a moment before answering, "Not particularly. A friend had introduced to me to this place, but I'm actually planning on leaving this city soon. Which means I must speak to Father Cornello as well."

"You've seen Cornello's work?"

The girl frowned, "Yes, I have." Through the memory of Rose, she saw the power Cornello had casted, but there was something about this claim of his, she felt that there was something wrong. What's more, this man promised having the ability to resurrect the dead. He had only proved himself capable in small things such as ignoring Equivalent Exchange, a law that is a norm in this land, and yet these small things are enough for all the people of this city to follow this man.

It was suspicious. She would like to speak to Cornello about her departure and begin preparations for her journey, but there is another matter she would like to clear up now that his "miracles" have come to her attention. What was he _really_ doing?

"You believe he can raise the dead?"

She hummed, truly there were stories of some people who had that capability, but there was one man in her world's history who has accomplished such feats; he was the Son of God after all. She has her doubts though that this priest have such powers. The girl answers honestly, "I'm not sure the extension of Cornello's power, but for a mortal man to claim he has this ability yet has not shown proof. I'll admit, I'm a little worried."

She fears that this man is a fraud, how many people in this city has he fooled?

"Huh, well this is a start," Edward said, smiling slightly, "Here I figured that every person in Liore follows that guy without question. Sure he ignores Equivalent Exchange but there's got to be a logical reason behind what he does. Not only that, but there's no way can anyone resurrect the dead."

He certainly sounds like he knows it all, Jeanne responded, "Hm, well, I wouldn't say it so certainly. Miracles do often happen."

She heard his footsteps slow down to a stop, the clanking of armor ceased as well. Jeanne halted, curiously facing the teen and his _bodyguard?_

"You're saying it's possible." The shorter boy's statement was blatant rather than it was a question.

"Of course," the girl said. She spoke without hesitation, and it was without blind acceptance either. She said it as if it were a fact. A faithful young woman. "There are instances of miracles happening due to the passion of the believer by prayer alone, and though it may not happen to everyone, to say that it never happens would not be correct. Even the dead is not limited this."

Edward stared into the eyes of the girl, after this brief moment he reaches into the pocket of his red coat and takes out a small book. The girl watches in wonder as he wordlessly opens the material to what was thought to be a random page.

"Water, 35 liters; carbon, 20 kilograms; ammonia, 4 liters; lime, 1.5 kilograms; phosphorus, 800 grams; salt, 250 grams; saltpeter, 100 grams."

"Um..." Neither Jeanne who was in control or the knowledge of Rose knew what this boy was saying, it was obvious that what he spoke was science, which is not either girl's greatest strength. She felt a bit overwhelmed at what could have been random things he's spouting to actually be something more sensible to him and possibly the person beside him.

"You know what these are?" Edward asked rhetorically as he sees the confusion in the girl's eyes. "They're the material makeup of a human body, calculated for one adult. With our science now, we know that much, but there has never been one reported case of a successful human transmutation actually taking place. So I'm a little curious how a simple thing like praying can do what science can't."

Jeanne remained quiet, unflinching.

"You know a kid could buy these ingredients down at the market without questions asked? Who knew making humans can be so cheap?" He shut his book closed and returned it back into his pocket, "I'm an Alchemist, and in our line of work, we don't rely on God or such. If anything, what we do may be something close to being gods ourselves. That's pretty ironic, don't you think?"

He spoke more so mockingly than he is being arrogant, whether he's hoping to make a reaction or sought to speak his mind to wake up this possibly blind believer. There was some admiration towards believers who follows without question, but to not question at all may lead them fall in a ditch they didn't think to look and see. To be so blunt and dismissive of this girl's answer is a favor he's doing to help her think more, otherwise she'll face a crushing blow from life, as is reality. Surprisingly, the girl hasn't blown up in defense as of yet, which was something he always gets with people who are firm in their beliefs.

"And we have good reason not to rely on prayers for a guy who might not even hear us. You think with the world going through hell, he could lend a hand more often-"

"Brother..." Alphonse stopped his brother to say any more. He's worried that this girl is going to kick them out in anger before they would meet Cornello, but she's been very quiet for someone whose beliefs were just mocked.

Apart from her surprise at the voice coming from the armor(he sounded much younger than she could have guessed him to be), Jeanne patiently heard the words of the boy with a clear thought and reasoning. Truthfully, she was surprised. If Rose was conscious and taken charge of her body, she would have been outraged, but Jeanne was more controlled, and beneath this boy's mocking she hears, there seems to be something more, and if her guess is correct, he's seen more troubles in the world to give reason why he feels the need to antagonize God. From his calm evaluation, he's quite passionate really.

Without any anger or judgment, Jeanne closed her eyes and smiles, "You are a very smart boy, I'll give you that."

The boy blinked, not the response he expected.

"I have no knowledge of the curriculum you study, but I can understand that it has led humanity through many discovery. I truly respect that. I would like to say though, that without our Lord, there would not be an earth for anyone to uncover it's wondrous secrets, and to know everything is a difficult thing to achieve," Her eyes softened. "I wish you the best in your studies, but I do hope that you will avoid any feeling of arrogance. The feats of science, whatever it may reach, does not make any man like or better than God."

Edward hadn't figure to hear her calm rebuke, that was honestly mature of her. "Arrogance huh, that reminds me of the story about a boy who wanted to escape a city, so his dad created him wings. He ended up getting too close to the sun, and came down hard," his smile returns, feigning humility as he placed his white-gloved hand on his heart, "I had suffered the burning a long time ago, but do you think that even a sinner like me can be forgiven?"

Jeanne saw through his act, though she cannot say the same for his claim of being "burnt." She answered honestly, "Not in Letoism. If you're truly interested, I'll be happy to direct you on the path towards the Lord."

Not that Edward plans to any time soon, especially for a boy who like Icarus, had something taken due to his arrogance.

They reached the end of the hallway. Guards were stationed between the two-way large doors. One door was pulled open, walking out was a middle-aged man in an outfit that signifies him working in the church - briefing through Rose's memories, Jeanne learned this man to be the Assistant Pastor. He looked as she approached and smiled at her in greeting.

"Ah, Rose! Who have you brought along?"

The girl opens her mouth to respond, only to realized that she hadn't even received the boys names. She turns around to face the visitors, sheepishly she said, "I actually haven't got their names yet."

"I'm Edward," the boy of golden irises introduced himself before pointing with his thumb to the person in armor, "This is my little brother Alphonse."

Jeanne blinked, the assistant was just as surprised. "Little...brother...?" The girl imagined dotted lines measuring Edward and Alphonse. "I would have thought it was the other way around."

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?!" Edward could not control his temper, he never could control his temper when his short height is mentioned. Alphonse quickly detained his brother, wrapping with his armored arms around the boy's waist and held him back as the State Alchemist viciously reaches for the girl who simply did not know better, proceeding to kick the air. "YOU CALLING ME LITTLE?!"

"Brother! She didn't mean to make fun of you!" The armored brother tried to reason.

Jeanne was taken aback, etching away a few millimeters, "I did not mean to offend in anyway, I just...well..."

He was short, so Jeanne had assumed him to be the youngest.

"Go on, say it. I dare you..." The Fullmetal Alchemist darkly imposed, a warning under the layer.

Jeanne wisely chose not to. Note to self: Never point out this boy's height. Ever. Though she will pray that he will one day come to be content with his stature.

"...So, have you come to see Father Cornello?" The Assistant Pastor questioned. The State Alchemist stopped his fussing and listened. "It's not surprising that people wish to speak with him. You've been blessed, he has an opening in his schedule to meet the both of you but only for a brief moment."

"Really now?" Edward smirked, "Perfect. Take us to him."

Though Jeanne has her own priority to meet with Cornello in order to announce her leave, she was curious about the brothers objective. Have they come to test this man's "gift?" The more she thought about Cornello's promise, the more her heart is tampered with unease. She has envisioned his smile and acknowledged his part in rescuing Rose from her utter despair after losing all those she had loved - mercy on her soul.

The front that Cornello had displayed to Rose, Jeanne felt that it had all been an act, then again, she needed to see Cornello himself before she would have an opinion. Besides, she is Ruler, a neutral Servant who must only focused on the war's stability, clearly there was something amiss happening in the war if Jeanne had to possess a body rather than be summoned normally as any Servant would. She must not get herself involved with matters that strays from her goal. And yet, can she really turn away from this? The priest that holds the city by his promise of supposed legitimacy?

The two doors were pushed open by the guards, the Pastor Assistant with Jeanne and the brothers enters the new room. No sunlight reaches here, the torches hung by the pillars their only source of light, the flames creating an orange hue of the place.

"We won't take long, just got a couple of questions for Father Cornello," Edward said.

"Yes, of course," The Pastor Assistant said as they went further into the large room. "Let's end this as quickly as we can."

The guards behind them hastily shuts the door to lock. Men sprung out of hiding behind the pillars and quickly surrounded the brothers, trapping them with their spears.

Jeanne was startled by the sudden aggression towards these boys, and witnessed the Pastor Assistant pulling out a pistol from his pocket and locked his target on Edward. The brothers were calm but their guard was up, ready to defend themselves.

"What is the meaning of this?" Jeanne may have been planning to possibly stay out of whatever conspiracy is transpiring here, but she cannot sit idle by while the boys lives are in danger. What had these brothers done to be pointed at by this many weapons? They have done nothing wrong in her eyes.

"Stay back Rose!" The Pastor Assistant advices, "These people threaten to ensnare the Father. They're heathens!"

Edward smirks once more, "Well, like you said," he grabbed the wood of the one of the guard's spear, "Let's end this quickly!" He pulled the surprised guard in and struck him with a kick, a very hard kick as if the man was hit by a hefty hammer, and sent him flying. He took advantage of the men's surprise and swiftly broke the staffs of their weapons by his right grip alone. His brother Alphonse assisted him, being a shield to his brother's back as he punches a guard square in the jaw.

The Pastor Assistant was shocked at how quickly the brothers - let alone one kid, are taking down the men. In his moment of stunned awe and fear, Alphonse punches him in the nose and the gun slipped from his hand. It clattered against the floor, thankfully not going off, and slid across until it tapped against Jeanne's feet. The girl barely noticed this, her focus on the scene before her. These boys certainly aren't helpless.

All the men were incapacitated, the Elric Brothers stood victorious.

"What is all this racket?"

Those who still stood looks towards the top of the stairs, where a man in a black priest robe revealed himself. An elderly man with little hair over his head, and a face that feigns kindness, having a self-conceited air as if others are lesser than him. Father Cornello.

"Oh, it's you two," he spoke as if he was surprised to see them. He smiled, a warm welcoming that hides his deviousness, "Welcome Fullmetal Alchemist, to our sacred order. I am deeply sorry for the disrespect my followers have caused."

Edward huffs in disinterest, "It's no trouble at all, and I doubt a man who looks down on us would really feel sorry."

Father Cornello continues, "Is there a reason for your arrival?"

"Of course, you won't find me coming to church often. First off," his golden eyes pierces, "How do you use your cheap alchemy that manages to fool all the people in Liore?"

Jeanne's eyes narrows at the priest.

"How dare you! My work is a gift from God, I will not stand for your accusation and comparison to my work as your wretched Alchemy," his smile widens, teeth showing, "If anything, my power far surpasses yours!" He pressed his hands together, red sparks scatters and reacted with strange magic at the works. A mini statue of himself is formed in his palm. "There, can your alchemy reach feats like this?"

Edward hummed in thought, grabbing his own chin, "That's the weird thing about what you're doing. How can you perform transmutation while ignoring the laws of equivalent exchange?"

"Because it's not Alchemy!"

Edward ignores the priest, "Then I realized, if you were to have something powerful, something that's heard in legends, an item that's able to display vast amounts of power and substitute the laws of Alchemy, you can make the impossible, possible." He glares at the priest, "Something like…The Philosopher's Stone."

The boy points to the ring on Cornello's finger, "That's what you ring has, right? Give it here."

"This is just an ordinary ring. My powers are from God himself!"

"Not complying huh? I guess I'll just have to beat you down and take it!" Edward started walking towards Cornello.

The priest scowled at the boy, "It seems you are far beyond repentance you heathen," he looked to the girl who had been silently evaluating everything happening in front of her, and smiled again. "Rose."

The girl looked to the old man.

"Pick up that gun, won't you?"

Edward stopped, quickly glancing at the girl. Alphonse gasped quietly behind his helmet.

Jeanne then finally noticed the gun by her foot, she did nothing for a brief moment, and then knelt down. Her fingers clenches around the handle and lifts the weapon from the ground.

"Good. Now go ahead and shoot these boys."

Edward gritted his teeth. Alphonse looked on in shock. Although this girl exclaims her odd standing of Letoism, for Cornello to ask of this must mean that she is somewhat devoted to him, and is using her devotion against them. She was just a bystander, they don't want to actually harm this misguided believer.

The girl stared at the gun without expression. She did not move, nor spoke.

"What's wrong Rose? Have you forgotten?" Father Cornello's true colors is shown, his grin stretched into that of a truly sadistic egomaniac, "When you lost your fiancé, who was it that saved you from the pit of despair? Who showed you the way of enlightenment and gave you hope?"

No response.

"My word is God's word. This is the will of God. Do it Rose! Or are you doubting my promise to bring your lover back to life? If you want to see him again, then shoot these boys!"

Jeanne has heard and seen enough. She placed the gun back down, "No."

Such a simple word, yet it was like a train had collided with Cornello. The priest stumbled, his grin gone and he looked on in bafflement. He had assumed Rose to hesitate but in the end, she was naïve, and so easy to fool, taking Cornello at his every word as the truth and he had confidence she would listen and follow through, she would do anything for the return of a loved one he knew he could never bring back. This was such a sudden change in character!

"W-What?"

Releasing the weapon, Jeanne stood with her back straight, her eyes hardened at Cornello. "No," she said again. "I had considered there to be something about your power to be a chance of misguided good will. But your arrogance is clear by your words alone. Father - No. Cornello. You are nothing but a false prophet!"

Another collision. Cornello was stunned beyond words to rebuke her statement. He did not expect it! What of her blind obedience? Her will to do anything he says like she promised! Had she come to see through his act? But that can't be! She was beyond faithful of his lies this morning! This…

Cornello blinked, and he finally saw who he was actually speaking to. He sees the face of Rose, but her hair had a slightly different style, and it seemed to have a gold's edge to her strands. Her eyes, the irises was of a color entirely different from her usual brown pair. This…This was not Rose.

Sweats pours down his wrinkled face as he, with a dry throat, questioned nervously, "Who are you?"

Edward watched the girl mildly impressed, until he heard Cornello asking a strange question. He looks at the stunned fake priest who just a moment ago seemed absolutely certain his attempt to manipulate the girl would work, and back at said girl who defied his expectations. He heard the girl's name was Rose, yet Cornello was asking who she was, like he was looking at a person he had never met before. The Alchemist's eyes narrowed.

What the hell is going on?

Jeanne was passed patience and a reasonable amount of displeasure surfaced through her furrowed brows. This man fooled the entire city, and tricked the girl she's currently possessing in her moment of grief. This innocent girl who genuinely wanted nothing more but the return of her lover. Instead of helping her move on from her grievances, this false priest used her emotions for his own hidden ambitions.

Jeanne is an honest and accepting girl, and though she would love everyone no matter who they are, she does not go blind to any wrong actions they may do. Thus, she cannot keep herself out of this, and Cornello's words that stirred her controlled passion would have her voluntarily interfere against him anyhow.

"I am Jeanne D'Arc. I, who have heard the voice of God, will not stand by while you continue to use the name of the Lord for your own gain! Cornello, I offer you a choice, reveal yourself to the public, display the truth of your lies and repent!"

Edward looked to Alphonse, who shares his brother's confusion. The armored Alchemist noisily shrugs, "I have no idea what's going on brother."

For a moment, Cornello really wanted to do what Jeanne told him to do. But why? This was nothing more than a girl! How could…how could he feel so captured and shaken by her _charisma!_ Charisma he didn't even knew Rose could have, otherwise solidifying his theory that this really wasn't the meek, foolish girl he had deceived. But no matter her words, his stubborn nature and refusal to reveal his true self to the people of Liore (such actions will have him be hanged by the angered citizens) had him glued his feet in place, and he glared at the girl.

"Jeanne you say? Well, whoever the hell you think you are, you'll regret defying me!" He reaches for a lever from the wall and pulled it down.

The wall beneath him revealed a secret door, lifting itself in a heavy crumble, dust falls like streams. Red eyes pierces through the darkness, and a monster walks out. A creature with mixed animal genes evident to it's contradicting physical features. A lion's front with wild brown mane apart from a single dirty blonde streak, his bottom half depicts the feet of a bird and feathers like so, and a long reptilian tail.

"A chimera…" Edward said the name of what this being is.

"What a horrible thing to do with a Philosopher's stone," Alphonse commented. It is not the first time the brothers came across monsters like these, and Edward has dealt with more competent rogue Alchemists. This should be easy.

"Now my creature, tear these insolent brats apart!" Cornello demanded and pointed at Jeanne, "I say start with her!"

Edward calls out to her, "Get out of here!" He claps his hands together and pressed one palm against the floor, blue lights sparks beneath his hand and he raises it, creating a spear made out of the matters of the floor.

"We'll cover you!" Alphonse joins in, running to his brother's side.

But Jeanne did not move, which resounded a growl of frustration from Edward. Why isn't she running? This girl can't think she could take this monster on. Sure this is just a low-level creature but it's still dangerous to a civilian like her. She should just scram already!

And then he saw a surprising sight. The creature gazes at the girl and had planned to follow through it's master's orders, but one look at the girl name Jeanne, and it froze.

Sweat drips from its fur in agitation and fear. Its multiple instincts screaming at him that this girl is not to be trifled with. She looked weak, easy to devour, but its instincts warned that should it attack her, it will be killed. There was a strength about her so loud it drew the monster to slowly back away.

"What are you doing?! I said attack!"

Even with its master ushering him a second time, the monster knew he was weak as oppose to the girl, he could not attack her and expect to survive.

"Its…backing away from her…" Alphonse was at a lost. Why is this monster acting like the girl is the bigger predator here? Was there something about her that made the creature afraid? But how could that be? She looked like a normal girl.

The chimera averts his eyes to the two alchemist, it glanced at Jeanne once more before deciding the better course of action. Kill the two boys who it feels are no threat. Easy picking in comparison.

The monster lunged at them.

Edward threw the spear to attack the chimera, but the beast's claws broke through it like brittle twigs.

"Brother!" Alphonse went in front of Edward and took the impact of the monster, grabbing it's sides.

"I got your back Al!" Edward clapped his hands together again and pressed the floor, instead of summoning another weapon, a block shot up in front of Alphonse, ramming against the beast like a huge fist. The chimera's claws was able to chip under the chin of Alphonse' helmet, knocking it off his body before the creature crashed to the ground.

Shaking it's head and quickly getting up, the Chimera comes after the stumbling armored brother, but Edward shielded Alphonse and raises his right arm. Sharp teeth enclosed the boy's arm, tearing through his red sleeve. It's weight pushed Edward, but he held his ground enough to only skid back by a foot.

The chimera's clawed foot scrapes against Edward's pants as it deepens it's bite, its prey was done for. It had a venomous snake part of its genes, it won't be long before the boy is paralyzed. However, the chimera knew instantly that something was wrong. It did not taste the blood that should spill from biting into the boy's skin, and more importantly, the chimera should have felt its teeth meeting flesh. Instead, it was like biting into a rock.

The chimera met Edward's gleaming mischievous eyes, "What's wrong kitty? Not a good taste for you?" Edward fiercely kicks the creature in the stomach, the chimera was sent flying, it's claws had only been able to shred the sleeve and some of the left leg of Edward's pants.

Cold steel shone in the glow of the torches, the golden-eyed Alchemist right arm and left leg were entirely metal with workings of mechanical complexity that helps substitute his movements with heavy ease.

The chimera did not take accounted the prosthetics the boy would have, but overconfident that it would still win if he attacked more ferociously, he stood back up, ignoring the pain, and lunges again with a roar.

It's roar turned to a cry when Jeanne dashed in front of Edward and swung her silver sword. The beast was able to defend itself by raising its arm, but Jeanne's strength as a Servant was amazing. She deeply scarred the monster and sentenced it to the pillars with a shout. The chimera's back suffers as it hit against the pillar and fell. Losing all the strength and will to get back up, whimpering pathetically.

Edward gaped at the girl who had suddenly came in front of him and was able to make a single attack on the monster on her own. He didn't think she had such strength. In addition, where did she get a sword like that?

"Are you two alright?" Jeanne turned her head to meet Edward, her eyes fell upon his substitute limbs in surprise before looking at Alphonse, and gasped.

The armored body of Alphonse pushes himself back up, reaching to rub his head, only to find that his helmet had fallen off. The interior of his suit was revealed, devoid of any person, only a small red circular design marked in old blood was visible.

"There's…no one inside," Jeanne stared, astounded. Edward paid no more mind to her and went to collect his brother's head.

"You okay Al?" Edward picked up the helmet and tossed it. Alphonse caught it easily, thanking the older sibling.

Cornello had watched all this in frustration and disbelief, but regardless of the capabilities the Elric brothers are able to do with one not needing to create a transmutation circle, and the girl's shocking display of strength, it was pushed aside when he saw the armored boy that is without a _boy_ inside, "A soul bounded to a suit of armor?" Cornello closed his dropped jaw, looking the two brothers in a quick assessment.

A living armor, a boy missing his arm and leg. He grinned evilly, "I see. Look upon this Rose or whoever you are, these boys you've protected are beyond unrepentant sinners. They had performed the greatest taboo among Alchemists!"

Jeanne looked at the false priest, silently questioning his spiel.

"In their arrogance, they tried to play God, and lost their body and limbs! They've attempted Human Transmutation!"

Human Transmutation - the scientific act of bringing someone back from the dead. Jeanne had gathered this from her arrival in the world. A great taboo with a heavy price even though in the end it led only to failure. She looked at the two boys speechlessly, eyes widening not in horror but in great compassion. These boys have suffered greatly, even though it is due just that they tried to play God, her heart goes out to them without resistance.

Alphonse adjust his head back on before speaking, "Please Father Cornello. Just give us the Philosopher's Stone."

Cornello huffed as if it was the most ridiculous request, "Why? So you can use it for yourself? You deserved your wretched forms as far as I can see." He grips his cane, the red gem on his ring glowed, "But since you are so eager to play God, I might as well send you military dogs to him!" He transform his cane into a machine gun, grinning manically as he aimed at the brothers and Jeanne, "As for you girl, you defended those pair of heathens! For your blasphemy and betraying the Sun God Leto, you will share their fate!"

Edward showed no fear, "Sorry, but me and God aren't on the best terms, he'll just turn me away." He clapped and brought both his hands to the ground, a wall rises in front of him, his brother and Jeanne. Defending them from the hail of bullets that begins to eat away the makeshift wall with every hit. Jeanne steps away from the defense that was spilling hot sparks and dust, shielding her eyes with her hand. This man shows no sense of care, he would truly kill them.

A hand grasped onto hers, the girl looked to the State Alchemist who ushers her, "Come on! We're getting out of here!" He pulls her along, leaving the soon destroyed wall, and running to the doors as Alphonse becomes their shield. Edward figured the doors that they just came were locked so he simply used his Alchemy and proceeds to blow it apart.

Followers that were in the hall had heard the noises that brought them concerns, and were shocked off their balance when one of the doors in the hallway were blasted off, with three teenagers running out. Cornello had come out, ordering his followers to chase the proclaimed heathens who planned to spite the order. Adding to not hesitate when they see "Rose", claiming her to be a traitor beyond forgiving.

The followers, though shocked at "Rose's" involvement, obeyed Cornello's orders.

The Elric brothers and Jeanne turned to different corners constantly, though with Jeanne leading, they quickly got the hang of it due to her memory of Rose's memorization of every path inside the church. However, they came across Cornello's misguided followers, all with their rifles and aiming at the claimed heretics.

"Please wait! You have all been deceived!" Jeanne attempts to reason, Alphonse had saved her from damage when the followers started shooting and became the body shield again.

"They're not going to listen, not while believing in that crack priest," Edward tells it to her straight, taking her to another hallway as Alphonse follows behind. The game of many angry cats and three mice continues, the brothers and Jeanne reached to the part of the church that isn't running with gun blazing believers, at their moment to take breaths, Edward releases Jeanne's hand, "I got to say, you're braver and a lot stronger than I took you for," he said, not much admitting as he studies the girl in curiosity, mixed with small suspicion.

Jeanne clears her throat, "Anyhow…" She decided not to explain her great strength, she can't reveal herself as something called a Servant, they'll only ask more questions and it will lead to the reveal of the Holy Grail War which is supposed to remain a secret. "We seem to be near Cornello's office. Though I can't say how long we can remain until this hall is searched. I believe that even the citizens of Liore will hunt you down," she mentions sadly before dawning with determination, "You boys have to escape this city. I know a route we can take to avoid the eyes of everyone."

"We can't leave," Alphonse says, "Not without the Philosopher's Stone."

Edward perks at the mention of the false priest office. Gaining an idea, he looks to his brother, "Al, I need you to take this girl somewhere to hide."

"What are you going to do?"

Edward smiles assumingly to his brother, "Don't worry about it. Just get her to safety."

"I can help," Jeanne offers. Edward only glanced at her before turning away and started walking.

"I got this, you'll just get in the way," although he admits this girl to be strong, Edward knows he can handle this himself. She wouldn't help much either with what he plans to do.

"But-" Jeanne shrieked when Alphonse lifts her by her side.

"Sorry miss! I got to take you elsewhere!" Alphonse carries the girl with his right palm under her knees and his other hand supporting her back. Jeanne's protest was ignored as Alphonse ran once more.

They reached outside on a balcony, high at the church's roof where they see all of Liore. Just as Jeanne predicted, the people in the city were in disarray, savagely searching for the three heretics. Tearing apart the city walls itself just to look for them. This sight brought sadness to Jeanne, whether it was hers or Rose did not matter. Jeanne could not believe how far the people have been fooled by the false priest, if they truly sought for the Lord's love, this display of violence was not what he would ask for. The false priest had created a terrible image and perverted the word of the Lord he took as if they were from his own source material.

She settles her hand over her heart, Rose's heart. This woman too, had been fooled by the false priest's promise, a young woman who only wished to see her fiancé again. "I'm sorry," she said to the sleeping Rose.

"Don't be," Alphonse took her apology as if it was aimed for him, "You helped us really, you protected my brother, and stood up against Father Cornello when you knew he was wrong. You were really brave."

The girl looks to the armored boy in contemplation, and then walks up to him. Alphonse was startled by her sudden close proximity and sounded out his uncertainty. Jeanne gently presses her palm against where his heart is, or where it should be.

"What on earth happened to you?" Jeanne questioned, her voice gentle and treading carefully, if he decided not to answer then she will respect that.

Alphonse was silent for a moment, he then removed his helmet. The blood seal marked in zigzags with a curved line at the top visible inside. Once again, she confirmed that this being was hollow, yet still carries a soul. Was this seal the only thing that connects his soul to this suit of armor?

"Our mom died from an illness no one could cure. We were little kids, we didn't know what else to do. We weren't trying to play God," Alphonse started, "We just wanted to see our mom smile again."

She is speaking to a child. Perhaps he is actually teen, but to hear how old he had been when he became what he is now, he could still be that same child that was implanted into this suit of armor. Without a human body, does this mean he is without the human sense such as touch or smell? She can't imagine how that must be like, to live in that state for years.

"But our transmutation failed; I lost my body, and Ed lost his leg. He'd given up his arm just to save me and bound me to this armor with his own blood. We've been on a journey ever since then, looking for a way to reverse what happened to us, and our only hope was this stone that surpasses equivalent exchange."

"The Philosopher's Stone," Jeanne repeated the name the brothers mentioned Cornello has, she removed her hand from Alphonse as the armored boy continues.

"There's not much actual proof of it existing until now, but then again, the missions we go to a couple of times before have always led up to this moment, only to find out that it was just something else than what we were looking for. I like to hope though," Alphonse puts on his helmet again, "We learned the hard way that people don't come back from the dead, ever."

The wind picked up, Jeanne's mixed of black turned brunette and blonde hair dances in the breeze, the long rag tail on Alphonse helmet reacting the same. The boy was unfeeling to the cold touch of the breeze, such is the curse of having a body like this.

"Now, we want to get our bodies back. Even though we may die on this journey, this is the path we chose together, and we won't stop. No matter how long it takes. All we can do is keep moving."

A long silence befell between the two, the sun coming close to the horizon, nearing nighttime.

 **"You can do anything with the Philosopher's Stone, right? So why waste all that power performing phony miracles?"**

The two on the balcony were startled when they heard the voice of Edward resounding through the intercoms. Cornello's voice soon follows.

 **"Because with each miracle I perform, I can attract new believers to the order. Believers who would lay down their lives for my sake. I am slowly building an army, a legion of holy warriors not afraid to die. In a few more years, I'll be ready to release this mindless horde who I've fooled with my alchemy onto every city, and slowly make my way to the rest of the world. I will cause chaos in this country! Interested boy? I could use a talented alchemist like you in my plans, I'll share a piece of the world with you, while the rest of the fools does my bidding!"** The mad priest's laughter broke out.

Jeanne frowns in hearing the man's ploy. So that was it, world conquest by using the mass of citizens who had no battle experience? This plan was doomed to fail even without the brothers intervention, yet with their involvement, this plot will crumble before blood are needlessly spilled.

Edward's laughter cuts off Cornello's, the old man demanded, **"What are you laughing at boy?"**

 **"I figured you were dumb, but you're just a novice, aren't you?"**

A moment of nothing, and then a gasp. " **Is that a…HOW LONG WAS THIS MICROPHONE ON?!"**

 **"Long enough for the entire city to hear."**

Jeanne looks down, she spot the citizens standing in place, utterly in shock at the truth revealed unintended by the false priest himself. A great wave of relief washed her, the people have heard the truth, and yet, the look upon them as if their dreams were crushed before their eyes brought a heaviness in her heart. They need to be assured, that this terrible ordeal must not overshadow the true love of the real Father in heaven.

 **"You little brat-!"** The intercom cuts off.

"Your brother is a smart boy indeed," Jeanne described Edward again.

Alphonse gets up, "I better go see if he needs help. Everything should be fine for us now, but just in case, stay right here for a while, okay?"

Jeanne watches Alphonse leave, her contemplation of him and Edward not ceasing as of yet. Two brothers, no one else but each other. They had sinned so greatly as children, and ever since that tragic day, they have fought, bled, and met close calls constantly, all to revert the mistake they regretted making. Jeanne may not know how to help the boys in their mission, but God be willing, they will seek what they are after. She will pray for them and for any chance of peace in their future.

* * *

"So the stone's a fake?"

"Yeah, I'm sorry Al. I really thought this was it." The brothers leaves the church through the entrance, the sun halfway down and the sky was complete orange. Edward pats Alphonse's chest with his automail fist, "But we'll find another lead. Don't you worry, it'll be alright."

Though dejected by the news, Alphonse quickly found his optimism for his brother's sake, and nodded, "Yeah, we…"

Alphonse stops, Edward wondered his brother's sudden halt until he looked to where the youngest was looking at. Long hair of brown - previously darker - with golden streaks moves along the wind, the girl gazing at the city below. Jeanne tugged a strand behind her ear and turns to greet the brothers with a smile.

"Has everything gone well for you both?"

Edward blinked before responding, "I can tell you that Father Cornello won't be planning an uprising anytime soon, more like willing to hide from the mob for the rest of his life."

"I see. That is for the best then, I would rather he not be torn apart by the angry mass."

Edward raises an eyebrow, "Seriously? Even after what he did?" His face scrunches, "Don't tell me you're forgiving him!"

"If he wishes to change, I won't deny him forgiveness," Jeanne said sternly, "But that is up to him, and he will need to learn how to cope with his errors before seeking redemption. This path is not denied for any of God's children." She pauses to think, and comes closer to the brothers, pressing her fingers together as she started mildly, "Your brother has told me what happened with your limbs, and what you're planning to do to get them back along with his body."

Edward reacted in shock and shot a look at his brother, "Sh-she asked!" Alphonse said as if that was a good enough explanation and not one that could sent the both of them to prison. "Besides, she already saw me!"

"It's none of her business," Edward spat, his tone low but it was not towards his brother, it was to Jeanne. She had no right to learn that, it was their own personal matter. She shouldn't have pried.

Any word that could have come out from Edward quickly dies when Jeanne takes his automail hand, firmly gripped in a comforting hold, though he would not feel it. He looked on in surprised. The girl continues to smile. "What happened to the both of you was horrible, but I admire your determination to continue moving forward. I hope, and pray that your journey will be with ease and you will accomplish your goal."

Edward looked at his mechanic hand being grasped by Jeanne. For a moment, it seemed as if he was feeling warmth, but that was impossible. He reasoned that it was just a trick to the brain, making him believe that what he thought was feeling is just what he remembered his hand used to feel. He pulls it away, ignoring the dropped temperature, just another trick. "Yeah well, save your prayers. Like I said before, God and me aren't on good terms right now."

"That will not stop me from praying for you," Jeanne said, humorously defiant.

Edward studied the girl yet again, and scratches his head, "You're…really weird."

"Brother!" Alphonse was baffled by his blunt statement.

"I'm just saying!" The State Alchemist looks at Jeanne once more, "You are really weird." There was something about this girl he couldn't understand, there was more to her, something that he wanted to unravel because his instincts are telling him that this girl was…not normal. No, not _natural_. For some reason, that was the better description, this girl was not natural in his sense. As if she was a complicated problem that he can't solve because _it should not exist in this world_.

Jeanne blinks, "Am I?" She was not sure of how to respond to that, "I'm afraid there's not much I can do about that then."

This boy is far more keen than she would ever guess.

Edward shakes his head, dismissing his own comment, "Never mind. Forget what I said."

Jeanne contemplated him shortly, and then smiled, "I best be going. I'm actually quite happy to meet you brothers," she goes to Alphonse and takes his hand, praying for him to have a good future, "Take care, the both of you. Of yourself and of each other."

"Of course!" Alphonse happily accepted her words.

"You don't need to tell us that," Edward proudly states.

Jeanne believes them. Releasing herself from Alphonse, she makes one parting statement, "Maybe we'll meet again in the future, until then, I would look forward to seeing the both of you in your true forms." For now, she will go assist the people in Liore to recover. She still needed supplies to gather as well. The brothers were surprised by her statement, and with it, they felt more determined than ever. They nodded at her and bid their goodbyes.

However, when Jeanne had said this, she did not know how soon this would come to be, where they would come together, and under what circumstances. For when they do meet again, she will become more involved with the brothers than her duty as the Ruler Servant entitles her to, just as it will be for the Elric brothers who only sought for a way to restoration, and instead become entangled in a web of conspiracy, corruption, and breaking all that they knew as Alchemists in a war for a wish.

Threats coming from every direction. Allies formed in unexpected ways. Within the sea of pure destruction, heavy losses, and a darkness so evil it beckons to consume everything in it's wake, a beacon of hope as bright as a holy sword will emerge, in more ways than one.

But nothing has truly begun, not until a blade from a cursed red spear pierces the heart of a boy whose wish is for a way to undo his mistake. A boy who chases after a legend akin to a miracle.

* * *

 **In a world that demands equivalent exchange for all, what can be return for a miracle? How far are you willing to go for a wish?**


	2. A Wounded Heart

Chapter 2: A Wounded Heart

The sky grieves at a time when a little girl and her dog were turned into a monster. It was in the middle of the night when it's downpour diminished, but roaring noises were still often, yet it was not the sky that was active. They were from a secluded place in the slumbering East City. Loud strike after strike, sparks flew, men grinning with battle eageness and bloodlust.

The journey of the Elric brothers enmesh with the Holy Grail War commences tonight.

Edward Elric can't sleep, no matter how many times he tried. Every attempt to close his eyes and let his mind wander, all he saw was Nina, playing with her dog Alexander. Smiling widely as if there was nothing wrong with the world. Edward and Alphonse were quickly won by her, and saw her as a friend.

Then he would see them mesh together, brown hair loose over the snout of the dog, eyes void. She wasn't human anymore, sewn together with Alexander by her own father. A victim of the mad alchemist's pursuit to keep his State Alchemist license. It was irreversible, Nina will live the rest of her life as a chimera, a body of a dog and a mind of a little girl lacking comprehension, but it will one day drive her insane, as it did for her mother. He can still hear the haunting sounds of the girl that was no longer human.

 _"Ed...ward._ "

Edward's eyes snaps open, he stared the ceiling with frantic emotions before realizing that he had just woken up from another nightmare. His panic quickly dies down into sadness and guilt. He turns and looks out the window. Drops from the rain slid down the glass, but it looked like the rain itself stopped. It was dark outside, so it must have been somewhere around midnight.

Shaken from the nightmares his guilty conscience always manages to cook up, Edward lies on his bed and glared at the ceiling, internally beating himself up. He should have protected Nina. He should have known something terrible was going to happen. He should have considered Shou Tucker to be insane enough to use his own daughter and turn her into a chimera, even if the concept itself was just incomprehensible.

He should have saved her.

Edward can't sleep at all. With this undeniable fact, he tossed back his sheets. One foot feeling the cold wooden floor as the other foot does not, Edward pushes himself off the bed. Walking out of his bedroom and down the hall, he reaches the stairs. Each step the quietest of creeks, yet his presence is immediately known.

"Brother?" Alphonse puts down the book he had been reading. A single lamp glowing in the living room. Alphonse remains sitting in the chair, waiting for Edward to speak.

"Hey, sorry, I…" Edward couldn't bring himself to explain, far too in dejection, but his brother knew. He knew without ever having to hear Edward and merely needed to see his expression, such is the bond of the Elric brothers.

"A nightmare?" Alphonse correctly assumes. Edward nodded. "Was it about…" The younger has a faint idea.

"…Don't worry about it," Edward said, attempting to smile, "I'm just having some trouble sleeping, that's all."

"Do you want to talk? It'll probably help you get tired."

Edward smiles, "Sure thing," he comes over and sat down on the couch near Alphonse, "What book is that?"

"Well…I'm not really sure. To be honest, I have no idea what the author was thinking when she wrote this. It's kind of a mess. I had to read it a couple of times just to understand," he chuckled in try. "Although, I do appreciate her effort in giving this story a happy ending."

Edward smiles. The brothers continues to talk for a while, somewhat lifting the mood even though the State Alchemist still feels tremendous amount of self-resentment, which makes his smile at the pleasant talk feel as if he had no care in the world, as if he held no regards to what happened to Nina. It was uncontrollable for him to feel this way, but he believes at this moment he has no right to smile. He frowns unconsciously.

"Are you okay?"

Edward jerked, and stuttered a reply to assure that he was fine. Alphonse didn't believe him. The younger brother decided to bring their troubled thoughts out in the open.

"…It's horrible what happened."

Edward stiffens for one second, and then let loose of himself. His true feelings revealed.

"Sometimes," Alphonse continues, "I keep getting angry at myself, for not being able to do anything."

The oldest hunches forward, intertwining his fingers, "I know how you feel, Al," he tightens his grip, "But…there may be a way to help her, maybe someday…"

"But is there?" Alphonse said, "Brother, I'm worried what the military will do to her. She's not considered a human being anymore, they'll…they'll treat her like a specimen. She'll be…they'll…" His armor shook in distress.

Edward shares his brother's feelings. They knew how this will be, Nina will be experimented on. Worst of all, it probably won't be something to help her get back to normal, it'll just be endless tests all for curiosity sake. The State Alchemist's fists trembled.

"…We don't know exactly what's going to happen to her," Edward said, grasping for the presence of hope that's nowhere to be seen, "In the morning, we'll talk with Lieutenant Hawkeye. Maybe there's something we can do…"

The brothers eyes met. Alphonse considered Edward's words and nodded, "Yeah. You might be right," there wasn't much enthusiasm in his voice, but he agreed with Edward nonetheless. He starts again, "Are you feeling tired now?"

The Fullmetal Alchemist sighs, "No, not yet," if anything, all this worry over Nina got him more awake.

"Maybe you should try lying in bed," Alphonse suggested, "And…count sheep?"

The older brother smiles, albeit it was strained, and not due to drowsiness that has yet to come, "Well I could, but I wouldn't mind talking some more."

Neither would Alphonse, beyond anyone's expectation. He shook his head however, "No. You need your sleep."

With everything going on in Edward's mind, he really can't, now more than ever. But not wanting to worry Alphonse, and despite the inner turmoil of having to leave his brother who's lack of a true body prompts him to never sleep and thus leaves him with lonely nights - much to his dismay and heavy regret, he goes back upstairs.

But with the thoughts of Alphonse's condition now taking lead in his mind, and it was quickly being followed by other troubling thoughts, Edward is no longer tired, he felt agitated. His mind raced and his emotions started to spiral.

"Still can't sleep!" He mumbles in frustration through the pillow. He twists and turns in his bed, changing his sleep position, but all this does is stir up his energy. Edward won't be able to get any rest like this. He needed to exhaust himself somehow. Punch something and never stop until he drops, exercise for a moment, or maybe go for a walk.

Yeah. That sounds good. Edward needs to take a stroll and organize his thoughts. He could get his red coat to help him be warm in the low temperature night and in case it might rain again, then after he gets his boots he'll go downstairs…

And tell Alphonse what he plans to do, which will have the Soul-bound Alchemist to join him. It's not that Edward won't appreciate his company, far from it. But at the moment, he needs to sort these thoughts on his own. Deal with his trauma over Nina, the endless leads of the Philosopher's Stone that seems to be going nowhere, thinking about Alphonse's condition and the question if he hated Edward for what was done to the younger brother.

He seriously needed to be alone. He'll climb out of the window so to avoid bothering Alphonse. He won't take long. Twenty minutes at most.

That is all the time he needs.

* * *

The air of the night tickled his skin with it's light cold touch. The environment damp and the ground littered with puddles of rainwater. Every building has it's residents sleeping soundly, evidently no lights were on except the streetlamps which illuminates the way as Edward solely walks along the sidewalk, taking a deep breath and sighing through the nose.

In this cold night, he began reminiscing all that has happened, the series of events that led to him and his brother where they are right now, and once again, self-depreciating himself in immense fault for how it all came to be. He looked at his automail hand, the constant reminder of his sin. His brother the biggest one.

Does Alphonse resented him for what Edward has done to him? Edward can understand that, he really can, and yet it's so hard to accept the idea of being hated by his brother. But Edward is going to fix this. He has to. He doesn't care if he can't get his limbs back, as long as he can get Alphonse's body back, he'll be satisfied. There may not be much evidence, but it is scientifically possible for a Philosopher Stone to exist, he just has to find it somehow.

But then, what happens if it turns out that the stone is all just a legend? Or if it's not really capable of bringing back Alphonse's body. Edward would be lying if he said that these thoughts didn't come to him these last few years. If it turns out to be the case, then Edward would have to live with this guilt and horror over what he's done, forever accept the passive hatred from Alphonse, and they have to live with these forms for the rest of their life.

Edward finds himself hating the idea with a passion. Clenching his fingers into a fist, he adds fuel to his determination in seeking a way. If the Philosopher Stone won't help, then he'll find something else that will, he doesn't care how long it will take, he will find a way.

But will he be able to reach something like that, to help his brother, when he couldn't even help a little girl?

The thought of Nina had his determination crumbled and his fist loosened, even though he told Alphonse that there may be a way to help her, with her being merged like that, it was something that science can't undo. At least not currently, but it may take decades before actual progress shows, and she might not make it until then.

Just as Edward had planned, exhaustion hits him like a crashing wave, albeit he is in a depressed mood. A good night sleep should help him though, that is if he doesn't get anymore nightmares.

Edward looks ahead of him and stops short. "Huh? Wait, what part of the city am I at?"

He probably should have paid more attention to his surroundings, his teacher would have berated him and beat him up for his carelessness, any kind of people could be prowling this late at night, not that he can't take care of himself. At least he's not lost, it just seems that he went much farther away than he planned to.

Edward rubbed his tired eyes, "Guess I should head back," he starts backtracking his way to the dorm.

Clatters of metal against metal faintly echoes throughout the quiet night.

Edward halted when he heard this, perplexed. He listens, wondering if there were any late night workers nearby. It could be, but the sounds were too odd and too far to discern what it was he is hearing exactly. He frowns.

Rationally, he should probably leave alone whatever it was, but Edward was a curious boy. Have curiosity and suspicion mixed together and there would not be anything in the world strong enough to push him away until he settles his inquisitive habit.

He walks towards the direction the noise was coming from.

With his ears leading him, Edward drew closer to the source, and the sounds were becoming more clear. Like plates of strong bulky glass clashing against each other in a competitive rhythm. The first thought that came to him was his teacher Izumi, remembering how she would cross her kitchen knives together in threatening fury when she found out the Elric brothers did something stupid. Edward pales at the idea of her finding out the taboo the brothers have committed, he did not want to know what she would do.

A block away from him is the Main Square where all shops are gathered and should be closed at this time. Edward slows his pace considerably, the song of clashes and collision just ahead. He snuck in, avoiding an empty glass bottle possibly dropped by some drunk and pressing his back against the wall. He leans forward, carefully peeking around the building.

A body of blue's feet skids across the gravel, a figure with green hair grinning eagerly.

Edward's eyes widen.

Two men were in front of the small clock tower at the center of the Main Square, and they were fighting. Each clutching a spear, and each wearing strange outfits. One held a red weapon with markings surrounding the staff and carved up to the blade, a blue skin tight body wear with white line designs around the ribs and limbs. Silver plates of armor over his shoulders, his silver earrings dangling as he moves in his light armor shoes with incredible agility. Blue hair with a spiky top, tied by a cylinder hair item into a ponytail.

The second man has green hair, with one bang nearly over the eye. Dashing in his silver and black armor with boots matching the design, black undershirt and pants with two belts around each leg, a red scarf tied around his torso with the fabric long and loose over his back, whipping the air wildly as the man dodges. His spear a steel blade and wrappings at the end of his brown shaft.

Brisk actions of crossing blows by thrusts and swings. The man in blue sprinted around his assailant as he swung his spear with such quickness. The man with green hair counters each attack, though a few hits reached his defense, and planted cuts, frighteningly, the green haired man grin only pulled further. He intersected his opponent's spear and pierced his shoulder, blood spills and stained the steel blade.

 _Are these guys trying to kill each other?_ Edward kept his cool, even though his instincts were telling him to leave this area immediately. But completely enraptured by the epic fight before him, and at his total cluelessness at what was even going on held him in place and continues to watch.

The blue man backpedals, avoiding another attack, and braced himself for the coming kick too instant to dodge, it sends him flying towards the tower. Adjusting his body position in midair, his feet landed the brick wall and he leapt towards the green haired man like being fired from a cannon, leaving a small crater.

These were the makers of the sounds, the song of a fierce battle as both assailants look to spill the other's blood with their spears the singers. The very ground cracking under the pressure of every pounce they make. The two men smiling in great enjoyment and their scowl so frightening it sends a shiver down to Edward's spine. Whoever these men were, they were immensely skillful and powerful.

The warriors separated, distance in between them by twenty feet. Their bodies stilled, their focus on each other. Edward observes silently, lowering himself to avoid being seen.

The man with green hair reached up and felt the cut on his cheek, he saw the blood, and slowly builds up a joyful laughter, "I can't believe it, you're actually able to cut me! This fight was fated to happen Lancer!" He lifts a finger and points, "But you're holding back. To me as a warrior and to you as well, that's an insult. If you want to make this a little bit more interesting, fight me to your heart's content!"

The blue man called as Lancer responds, "Believe me Rider. There's nothing more I want than to give you my all. But I'm on a tight leash here."

"A **Command Seal** huh?" Rider huffs, "What a terrible Master you have then."

"I can think up better words to describe him," Lancer spat at whatever vulgar figure he was referring to. "Sorry to say that I may have to eventually retreat."

"What a shame, you're the first I met who may actually have a chance against me," Rider rubs his chin, "It's going to be such a bore killing you easily."

"Like hell I'll let that happen. If I'm in a tight corner, then I'll have to end it right then and there."

"Oh? So you're going to use _that_?" Rider eagerly questioned.

A growl seeps through Lancer, "Just wait and see, Rider. Your armor won't save you from this!"

Rider widely grins as he prepares himself, "Bring it, Lancer!"

Edward watches as Lancer grasped his spear with both hands. The head of the weapon pointed downwards, one palm flat against the shaft. His red spear burst in a violent flame-like aura, and it was like the air sucked in. The State Alchemist's breath hitched, losing his sense of breathing, and stared in shock at the abomination before him. Dread overcame him by the killing-intent pouring out from the active spear, the face of it's wielder just as terrifying.

"What the hell…?" Edward whispers. The Alchemist is true to his title, and it can be certain that what he is seeing surrounding that red spear was _not_ Alchemy. No such Alchemy is capable of such monstrous things, even for any the evil deeds done by the act, this was beyond science. He would have debated this thought, but at the moment his sight were so focused on the furious spear.

The imminent power from the spear spiked, Rider smiles in excitement as he prepares himself to take whatever attack was coming. The dread in Edward rapidly evolved to a drastic warning signal down to his core, telling him to leave now. It was even more apparent that what he was seeing was probably something he should not know about, and wouldn't dare test this by letting himself known.

He steps back instinctively, and his heel taps against a bottle with a light ding.

Lancer whips his head behind him, "Who's there?!" Rider looked as well.

 _Crap_.

Edward stood there, body still as the two men now acknowledges his existence.

"A witness?" Rider's expression drops into that of someone who is seeing a troubling situation. The power in Lancer's spear quickly dies at the boy's revealing.

The Fullmetal Alchemist decidedly swallowed down his unnerved spirit, he steps out and allowed himself to be seen fully, "Hey, what's going on here?" He demanded, his voice steady though a few sweats have formed. He was part of the military, so obviously any illegal action that's happening in front of him - if he cares enough - he should respond to it. Yet somehow, he feels as if he was out of his element here.

Not that he hadn't dealt with illegal fights before, he's stopped rinks like that a couple of times, but it's this impending fact that he's somehow facing these guys like he's in his underwear even though he's a talented Alchemist with martial arts training - well he's wearing his pajamas underneath his red coat but that wasn't the point.

He has this feeling that he can't expect to fight these guys, and win.

Rather than answered, Lancer sighed in exasperation, "And it was just getting good."

"Damn, and you were about to show your **Noble Phantasm**. Wait, does this mean we have to…"

Lancer pointedly glared at Rider, "What else are we supposed to do?"

"Hey!" Edward spoke louder, peeved at how he was being ignored.

"Come on. Can't blame the little brat-" Edward twitched in anger at Rider's words, "-for walking in on us. Who's gonna believe him anyway?"

"You know the rules. We can't take any chance."

"HELLO?!" Edward shouts, the two warriors looked at him in surprised as if remembering he was right there, "Will either of you tell me what the hell is going on here?!"

The men blinked, glancing at one another. Lancer chose to be the one to speak as he spun his pacified weapon and rest it over his shoulder, "Listen kid…"

Why do people always call him kid? He's a teenager dammit!

"I can't really explain anything to you. But I need you to do something for me."

Edward frowned skeptically at Lancer's coming request. The spearman lifts the weapon off his shoulder and held it almost leisurely, his knees bended.

"Stay right where you are."

Edward didn't know how he didn't see it coming, but the red blade was already close to his heart. Reacting instantaneously in a panicked state, he swung his concealed automail arm and smacked it away. A second strike comes, and he blocks it with his right arm again. His sleeve tears apart as Edward was forced back quite a distance and painfully bounced twice. Hurriedly stumbling to his feet and pressing his palm against the gravel. He sees red eyes narrowed at him, a clear read of this man looking to kill the Alchemist.

Edward refuses to let that happen. His gaze hardens, his clap sounds a metallic ring as Lancer comes for him again, and he slaps the ground. Blue light sparks everywhere, a wall made of the material from the ground shot up before him. Lancer was unprepared for something like Edward's fantastical alchemy and was struck in the chest. The attacker flew, and landed with a crash. Broken pieces of the ground scattered.

Impressed, Rider whistles, "Is that this Alchemy I've been hearing about?"

Edward would have given thought to the peculiar question until Lancer got back to his feet. It didn't look like he hurt the man much, the only thing Edward seemed to have done was getting that guy away from him, and infuriate him.

Lancer's furious expression dimmed to a smirk, "Looks like I might get some fun out of this!"

"Hey hold up! You're fighting _me_!" Rider shouted. Lancer ignored him and went for the Alchemist again.

Edward ran back to create a distance and to properly fight the man in blue, creating another wall to attack. Not yet comprehending the situation he is in, but he was slapped awake when he witness Lancer easily slicing through the wall Edward made with just one swing of his demonic spear.

Edward looked on in shock, and tactically chose to keep running.

He ran through an alleyway, Lancer chasing in hot pursuit. The Fullmetal Alchemist clapped once and slaps the wall as he proceeds, creating a boundary spilling from the building beside him and hopefully slowing the man down. It did, for precisely one second. Lancer breaks through the wall easily, on the dog of the military's tail, though who was the real animal here? Certainly not the one being chased.

Edward turns to another alley, evading another attack and Lancer's weapon instead pierced a wall. Not a moment to celebrate, as it turns out the Alchemist ended up running towards a dead end, a single door resigning on his left and nothing else on his right but blocks of brick twenty feet high.

No other way around this then. He manipulates the matter of his right arm and it became like that of an average sharp weapon. Lancer had successfully pulled out his weapon and looked at the blade of his arm and the brave look on Edward in intrigued.

"Going to stand up to me?" Lancer reveals his respect etching across his feature, "You sure are no push-over, pipsqueak."

"Shut up!" Getting his temper over his height the best of him, Edward throws the first attack, which was casually slapped away by the spear. Edward is an experienced fighter, but Lancer beats him with years of surviving endless battles, is stronger and far more quicker than any opponent Edward himself has ever faced.

Edward honestly gave it his all to block Lancer's strike, but he was overwhelmed repeatedly. He manages to push the blade away from his heart again, but Lancer gives a kick instead, a return gesture to Edward's earlier attack. The Fullmetal Alchemist had the wind knocked out of him and he broke through the door of an abandoned building. His whole body skids across the floor as he tries and fails to stop himself. He was able to push himself out of the way from Lancer's pounce and his thrust out of force despite the pain all over his body.

Another use of his Alchemy, Edward summons a pillar-size from the ground and although Lancer blocked with the staff of his spear, he was pushed back outside. The Alchemist makes a run for it with a harsh gasp, a horrifying realization that whatever this man is, Edward was outmatched. He can't fight by himself.

As Edward with an aching chest dashed across the empty hallway, he comes to a hasty halt when Rider suddenly appears through the window with an annoyed expression. "You're not getting away from me Lancer! We still haven't finished our match!"

Edward would like to officially call these guys lunatics.

He sees an open door to his right and lunges himself into the room, empty of all things but cobwebs in some places and brittle paint on the walls falling off. There was another door at the end, leading to another hallway. He sprints for it, glancing back once and saw the two men meeting, their spears clashing again. Rider is intent to continue his fight with Lancer.

Edward proceeds. Dashing through, he lets out a shout when he heard a tremendous noise of concrete being destroyed by the second match of the two warriors. The floor itself shook and he tripped. He pushes himself back up and ran once again in haste, any late movement and he fears it will be his demise. He transmutes the wall beside him to create another obstacle just to stall either of the warriors and for him to have a chance at seeking a way to escape.

The clash of blades ringing behind him, Edward slips around another corner with another hall revealed before him. An open doorway in his peripheral. He stops abruptly and looks again. The room was small like a closet, there was no escape through there, but maybe…

Edward went in. He knelt down as he faces the doorway, his palms against the ground and transmuting the materials to rise in blue sparks, completely blocking his one way out. He transmutes again, pressing the blocked path and manipulated the matter to appear something different. From outside this closet-sized place, the blocked path matched the wall around it, completely hiding the doorway without any flaw or clue to show that there was even a room there where the Alchemist hides.

Edward understood he couldn't outrun Lancer for long, his only bet left to take is to stay here and wait for the guy to run by. Remaining his position and keeping his breathing quiet, controlling himself to not make a sound, he heard the hasten pitter patter of someone running, followed by another set, the second runner shouted at the man name Lancer, his demand to finish their fight refused to be ignored.

All went quiet afterwards. Edward took one minute until he was sure that no one was coming back, leaning in close to hear anything. When nothing is heard, he transmuted and recreated his way out, seeing through the window the light of the moon again, about to be overcome by the dark clouds of the rainstorm's return.

The path to where those two men went was empty, yet knowing that this is the way they went, it was as if every crack and brittle paint warns him not to take this way, spelling threat and imminent death by the end of that man's red spear. As a result, Edward ran the other way, back to where he was kicked into this building. Content to avoid the two men who can bring fear in the word monster.

He's certainly not going to be sleeping any time soon.

* * *

The Fullmetal Alchemist ran as if the spearman in blue was right behind him, boots splashing against the puddles, he ignored the wet feel to his ankles. Though it seems he lost them, he can't waste a second dawdling, he has to get word to Eastern Command. A few blocks from here there should be a public phone booth he can use. This needs to be addressed to the colonel himself, if he's still in his office. Well, he has to reach _somebody_.

Edward recalls the fight he witnessed right before accidently revealing himself, the two men were definitely trying to kill each other, an illegal fight to the death that must be kept secret if the man in blue's attempt to murder the Alchemist was anything to go by.

However, the strangeness of this situation is profound: two men dressed as if they were in the medieval times, the word Master, Command Seals, what are Command Seals? He's also pretty sure that Rider guy said something about a Noble Phantom or something like that, what was that supposed to mean? Most importantly, what in the hell was that power swarming that guy's red spear? It was not normal, Edward shivers just picturing it in his head and his heart throbbed that he was almost stabbed by the same spear, though this could be because of the kick he received - _damn that blue guy._

There were so many questions, Edward was determined to discover and unravel this since he almost got killed just for seeing.

The adrenaline that zipped through his body dies slowly, not wanting to stop out in the open, Edward reaches for an alley that was a shortcut to where he needed to go. He presses his hand against the wall to keep himself standing and took deep breaths, his automail hand resting over a knee. As he regain stamina, Edward looks back to where he had ran from, no signs of anyone following so he was safe for now.

Staring into the empty road, Edward wipes away the sweats from his face and plans accordingly how he's going to explain this to Eastern Command, it'll be simple to say that he stumbled upon a fight and was nearly executed, then he remembered something annoying.

"I'm gonna have to give them the code," If Edward wants to reach out the military through the public phone booth, he has to recite the letters and numbers proving he does in fact work for them. He understands that it's to avoid random people from making prank phone calls but it can be seriously inconvenient. He starts walking through the alleyway, "Great, it's always such a pain in the ass giving some code when there's an emergency-"

Sharpness intrudes his chest.

Edward's words, thoughts, and movements stopped. Confusion swarms his mind as pain erupts, horror afloats when his own blood stains the front of his white shirt and pain was like he was shot and the bullet got stuck. This isn't possible. He's been wounded. But how? When? He was sure he evaded that man's attacks!

A warped color of red swirls over his chest, stretching across him, a red blade reveals. It expands to reveal the shaft, hand, and the full figure of Lancer, eyeing the boy with indifference, that this misfortune was a constant acquaintance which he has harbored a dislike to, but accepted its existence.

Edward stared at the "ghost" before him in utter disbelief, his skin paled as he loses blood. His logical mind trying and failing to comprehend the man's mystical arrival, but one more prominent signal shot his brain that at least was the only thing he understood. He has been stabbed.

"Sorry kid," Lancer said, "But you weren't supposed to see that."

Edward grasped the shaft with trembling hands. One action, just one more act, his last hope to survive by pulling out the weapon from his heart. He is a stubborn boy like that, even if doing this would have him lose more blood and that he can't get away from his attacker now, he refuses to give up. To spite the odds is in his nature.

But it was a futile effort, his fate is sealed the moment his heart was pierced by the spear.

Lancer pushed his weapon further, the tip of the blade exiting the back of Edward's red jacket. He swiftly pulls it out, the Alchemist drops onto the mucky ground, and distantly he said, "Curse at your luck or at me as much as you like, find peace with any regrets you have."

Edward clutches his chest in agony, tears dripping from his widened eyes. He spot the Lancer's feet casually walking beside him and stubbornly reaches out for the ankles, a desperate act to force some answers from the man. He barely touched the heel.

"Honestly, my first battle that started off decently, and I end up killing a kid," Lancer complains. Edward's focus remains on the parting Lancer, forcing out whatever sounds he can muster to stop him, but were weak and inaudible. "Some hero I am."

He watched as Lancer fades in a mist of gold.

Dark clouds shielded the moon from the saddening sight of the Fullmetal Alchemist bleeding to death, like the sky coming to grieve yet again. Edward sputtered words for anyone to hear, to cry out for help, but he was in too much pain and far too exhausted. Even as he managed to spell out "Help", no one could hear him. No one would come to save him.

 _Am I going to die?_

It appears so, and it turns out, death was very painful, but not because of the wound. He thought of all the people he cared greatly, all the people who in turn cared for him. Alphonse, Winry, Pinako, Roy, Riza, everyone he knew. The pain of death was not how he was killed, it's what he's about to leave behind without his consent.

There were some acceptance with this, after all, what good was he when he couldn't help Nina? An innocent little girl, turned to a monster because he was oblivious and ignorant. There was also no way for him to survive, not unless some miracle were to happen. But the night was quiet, and Edward understood this.

Yet…

 _"I promise Al, no matter how long it takes. I will get your body back."_

Dragging his automail limb, his fingers dug the ground as he clenches his hand into a fist and punched the ground once.

He can't die. No. He refuses to die right now. Alphonse needs him! He doesn't even know where Edward was, there is no way will the Alchemist let his little brother find his dead body in some alley! Not only that, Winry would kill him if he does die here, and if not, she'll cry, Edward doesn't want to make her cry or have Alphonse feel he's alone in the world. He. Will. Not. Die.

"I made a promise…" Edward began dragging himself forward, crawling with defiance, "I would get...your body back...Alphonse…"

He leaves behind a trail of blood.

"We've come...too far...I won't let it end...like this…" He coughed, red splatters over his chin, "I won't die...I can't die…"

His body drags across the gravel, the toes of his boots slipping and his fingers clawing the ground in order to pull himself. The light of the streetlamp just a foot away, he pushed himself, using his right arm for support.

"I can't…."

His body drops on the pavement, half of him under the light, and he went still. The night was quiet once more.

Though not completely.

One block away, footsteps of armored boots closes in where the tenacious boy lies. Her blonde locks tied in a single thick brain swayed with the wind, her pink bangs behind her steel headwear disturbed as well. Aquamarine eyes towards the sky, noting the coming weather, her attention reverts to what she had felt moments ago.

"A battle between Servants had unfolded in this city," she confirmed, "And just a moment ago, I felt the presence of one. What happened here?" The fight she sensed between the Servants had ended abruptly, but she sensed neither have died, yet this is not the strange that troubles the girl.

Jeanne's journey across Amestris led her with baffling findings, and the first sign of this anomaly, the amount of Command Seals she carries, with connections to Servants that far exceeds the expected Seven. Her meetings with the Masters and Servants had her to relay this fact, and watch with a neutral expression of horror etching their faces at her revealing this disturbing fact.

Though she was aware of this during her summoning, there are simply too many Masters and Servants spread across this country, and so many battles are happening in so many places, Jeanne can't hope to catch all of them at the same time even for a Ruler Servant. What's more, some of the Masters she had met were Alchemists who had no knowledge of the Holy Grail War beforehand.

What is going on? What has tampered with the system of this war? There should not be this many Masters and Servants, it was too grand, the Master rosters were beyond random, and she has no clear distinction in where the main battlefield will take place for all Servants to gather - to be frank, if there were none it would be better that way. With the amount of Servants there are, the crust or perhaps the mantle of the earth itself would not survive through their intense battle.

Jeanne wanders with these concerns over the anomaly, wondering what to do with this predicament. She reaches the intersection of the sidewalk, taking her surroundings into account to seek for the Servants and hopes that her appearance will draw them out as she wore her armor, that either opponents or Master can explain to her what has unraveled here.

Her eyes were upon the fallen form of a boy in a distinguishable red jacket.

Jolted at the sight, Jeanne came to his side instantaneously. "Are you alright?!" She hopes for a response, but there was none. She gently moved his body to have his front face the sky, and saw the pool of blood beneath him.

Jeanne inspects the wound. Whatever weapon was used had gone all the way through, his heart cut and struggles to keep pumping, but by the second it beat less and less.

Even with top-class medical help by the most brilliant surgeon existing, any work in saving this boy's life would not help. For the process to prevent this boy's death is to surgically replace the heart and stitch the tissues back together also requires for his body to heal on its own in time, which even with the procedure done, there was a curse embedded in the infliction. This curse would not allow any healing even by thaumaturgy, it was sure death.

Curses are not common among the citizens, Alchemists are non-believers of such things, and a Magus can cast one but this curse is much more powerful than any Magus can ever accomplish. A while ago, she had detected the battles between Servants not far from here, and she had just felt a Servant before his exit, mostly likely in his spirit form.

A Servant has done this, she deduced. It was done to a boy that had no markings of faded Command Seals so he could not have been a defeated Master. He was an innocent bystander, one that must have saw the Servant Battle, and in order to keep the war a secret, he was silenced.

"If only I had come sooner," Jeanne whispers regretfully. This was completely unnecessary, were either Servant's Master not qualified to perform a memory alteration spell to have him forget what he saw? Or did the Masters not attend, and the Servants were left to deal with this boy and do what they only could.

She adjusts her hold of the boy, and at last took a long look at his face. Recollection struck her. She met this boy before. The boy who had left her a lasting impression, helped greatly along with his travelling companion that is his younger brother. The brothers who had foiled and revealed the plot of a false priest to the people of Liore. The brothers who had desired to gain back what was lost.

Held in her arms was the famous or infamous State Alchemist, the Fullmetal Alchemist - a fitting title. Edward Elric.

Jeanne intakes a quiet gasp. She had said that she would have liked meeting them again, but she would never have thought it would be like this. What of his brother? Did he actually came out this late at night by himself? Does his brother even know he's here?

If not, then Edward is here without anyone knowing, and he who had the misfortune to walk in between Servants dueling, it was a such a depressing situation that Jeanne honestly wanted to cry.

"I...can't…"

The boy mumbled, surprising Jeanne. "What was that?" She leaned in, her ears close to Edward.

He spoke again, though it doesn't appear that he acknowledged the person holding him, completely out of it and barely holding onto the tiniest bit of his consciousness.

"I...can't...die...Alphonse…" He whispers for his brother.

Jeanne's heart could not take it, tears welled up as she understood what he is saying, recalling Alphonse's explanation.

 _"Now, we want to get our bodies back. Even though we may die on this journey, this is the path we chose together, and we won't stop. No matter how long it takes. All we can do is keep moving."_

Yet such a resolved proclamation could only be strengthen by the companionship that is between these two brothers. Jeanne has a feeling that if one of the brothers lost the other, then it would be entirely difficult if not impossible to keep going. These brothers as she has seen cared so deeply for one another, they're family, one which Jeanne understood the importance of it.

They were all they had left, a reason to keep going.

Jeanne clenched the shirt in front of her heart, and her expression hardened with determination. Releasing, she settles her hand over Edward's wound, and closes her eyes.

"Oh Lord, I beseech you…"

A soft, warm glow swarms her palm. Jeanne knew that even if she were to go all out running to the nearest hospital, the boy would not make it, not with this curse upon him. She had to break it, and doing so, she will be repairing his heart by some of it. In her legend there was an account that she was wounded on the battlefield, and that the Lord healed her instantly. It is a miracle, one that was later scorned as witchcraft. Jeanne will transfer this miracle to the boy, though it will only be partly, she will at least heal him properly afterwards.

She prays quietly for the boy. Each second, the glow beneath her hand grew brighter, breaking the curse. The hole through Edward's back closes, and the inside of his chest began healing. Within a short moment, Jeanne did the best that she could, and Edward gasped. Greatly exhausted, he accomplished opening half a centimeter of his eyes, his savior a blurry image before everything went black, though he still breathes.

Jeanne sighed in relief, but her job is not done yet. However, before she could continue healing this boy, headlights of a coming car shone in her peripherals. She suffers with confliction, even in this world Thaumaturgy is kept a secret, though surely she can explain what she's doing is alchemy. Yet if one looks at it closely...She musn't risk exposing magecraft, but she cannot leave this boy while he still needs help.

There's only one other option. Her armor quickly vanished into her civilian outfit.

Roy Mustang was as usual dead tired, having to deal all night with the paperwork surrounding Shou Tucker and Nina - truly a case about the Devil's work. He just can't wait until he gets whatever hours of sleep he can gather, a shame he wasn't able to push it off but it wasn't a case which Roy could just slack off from, not especially with Edward and Alphonse deeply traumatized by it. It would be in a way insulting.

After a yawn, Roy looks forward to reach home and drop onto bed. He was completely exhausted, but when he saw someone franticly waving at him on the sidewalk, he became alert once more.

"Help! Help!"

Roy heard the girl's cry, and saw someone on the ground beside her. He stops his vehicle short, and steps out with the ignition on, "What is it?"

Jeanne lifted the boy into a sitting position, "This boy was attacked. He needs medical attention!"

Roy went closer to the pair, and realized in shock. Though not in his usual braided hair but a ponytail, Roy still recognizes that red coat and form. He hurries closer and lifts the boy's head, "Fullmetal?" He looks down at the red stain, "Get him in the car."

Jeanne did as he commanded. The tires screamed once Roy hits the gas and broke the speed limit on his way to the hospital. In the backseat, Jeanne has the unconscious Ed's head on her knees, her hand grasped his metal palm and settling it over his chest. She gazes worriedly at the Alchemist and prays continuously that he will make it.

"What happened?" Roy's questions was stern and supposedly level-headed, but deep in his core, there was fire building up. Someone had attacked Edward, his own subordinate. It's not a total surprise that enemies would build grudges after being exposed and beaten by the young State Alchemist, but to think someone actually tried to kill him and almost succeeded, while in Roy's jurisdiction at that. As he began plotting to set aflame to whoever tried to murder the boy, his mind drifts to questions. What was Edward doing out here in the first place?

"I was walking when I stumbled upon him. I did all that I could to stop the bleeding, but he needs a doctor," Jeanne explains. Clearly, she can't tell him that she was on patrol in search for a battle between fantastical reincarnated heroes, she hopes that this will be enough of an explanation.

Roy Mustang, at the moment, decides not to question the girl and her strange timing - not many people come out this late after all. Right now, he needs to save Edward. The hospital is in sight once he made a sharp turn, and parked right near the entrance, leaving behind lines of black tire marks. The workers outside were shocked at this display of recklessness, and had a mind to shout at the man until he stepped out and spoke, "I have an injured State Alchemist with me!"

Jeanne opens the door and helped the struggling Edward out, nurses gasped at the sight of his condition and some went to his aid while others went to warn the doctors of a coming emergency. As Jeanne watches Edward be taken from her and to a stroller for him to lie upon, mixed feelings of relief and worry swirls within her heart, but there was no point of it. She's done all that she can, she must now leave the rest to the doctors and to Edward.

After the workers hurries the stroller inside the building with Roy close behind, Jeanne leaves one long glance at the hospital before turning her heel, and walks into the night. There are still Servants and their Masters she must locate.

"Can you save him?" Roy looks over the doctor's shoulder as he follows their speed. Eyes on the gasping Ed with concealed concern, at least, the best as he could.

"This is a deep wound. He's not bleeding much but we need to get him to surgery and close this, beyond that he may have a chance."

A woman in white uniform stops Roy from following, "Please wait here, we have to prep him for the procedure."

Roy understood, he stood there silently gazing after the way his subordinate left. Witnessing the stroller pushed open the doors with an urgent smack. For a moment, he didn't move, as if debating to go on ahead or remain in place, and eventually found himself at the waiting room. There were plenty of empty chairs for him to take, but before he does that, he needs to use a phone.

Finding one inside the hospital, Roy picked up the receiver and dialed the number in quick precision. After two waiting beeps, the person at the other line answers.

 _"Hello?"_

"Lieutenant."

 _"Sir?"_ Riza Hawkeye woke up diligently once she heard his voice, _"What is it?"_

"Fullmetal is in the hospital."

A sharp, quiet gasp sounds through the line.

"I was on my way home when a civilian waved me down and I found her holding up Fullmetal. He looked to have been stabbed through the heart."

 _"How is he?"_ Though Riza spoke evenly, Roy could hear the unease and worry.

"He's undergoing surgery right now, the wound is deep but they say he has a chance."

 _"Is Alphonse there?"_

"No. Which is why I called you, I need you to tell him what happened and bring him here," Roy knows how little Alphonse is going to like this, he'll start running at the word of his brother's injury. "I'll be here waiting."

 _"Understood sir."_

After parting words, Roy hangs up. As much as Roy desired to find the perpetrator, there really wasn't much to go by with his only witness the unconscious Fullmetal Alchemist undergoing surgery right now, and possibly-

The girl.

Remembering her, Roy hurries outside of the hospital and searched his surroundings. It looks like the one who found Fullmetal left unannounced, which would have not been so bothering were it not so sudden. Doesn't she think it best to stay behind for a soldier like him to question her further? To Roy, this abrupt leave is suspicious, or maybe he's just getting desperate. No matter, he'll find her if he needs to.

Right now, he has to wait and hear the condition of his subordinate. Taking a seat in the lobby and clenching his hands together as he frowns at the floor. He felt so restless right now, but he knew Fullmetal was a stubborn kid, he won't go down so easily. He better not, Roy would order him so. Refused to let him give up. Otherwise, the Flame Alchemist will be on a mass hunt for Edward's killer, and there would be no room to consider taking the attacker in "unburnt" and moving.

* * *

Alphonse completed yet another book for the third time this night. The loneliness was unbearable for a naturally sociable being like the youngest Elric, and though reading helps keep his mind busy, it would have been better having someone to talk to. With his lack of a body, there was no sleep, no way to experience the illusion of time going by quickly as he dreams and then wake up, ready to face the day, never having to face the boredom and disturbingly quiet, emotionally numbing environment. He figured that even an introvert would have problems not being able to hear a single voice for hours, it didn't matter if the voices were directed to him or not.

If Alphonse was feeling this bad, especially considering that this happens every night since the day his soul was bound to this armor, why would he not let Edward stay up and talk with him as much as he wishes him to? He couldn't, and simply wouldn't for the sake of his brother.

To have Edward stay up all night would exhaust the State Alchemist by morning, and he was already pushing himself into a workaholic for any new leads over the Philosopher's Stone - researching and beating up criminals almost daily. Alphonse had constantly tried getting Edward to slow down, and though he would receive reassurance that he is fine, Alphonse always catches him working late until the youngest had enough and dragged his brother to bed.

Edward had lost his arm and leg but he still had a body, one that needed food and rest, something which Alphonse does not, and he would not have his brother sacrifice his health over something that is considered to be selfish, even if it was understandable.

The loneliness can be soul crushing.

In this normally quiet time, there was a noise outside the front door of a car pulling up, surprising Alphonse. Boots tapped against the concrete, and his door was knocked three times.

Who could that be at this hour?

Alphonse rose with metal shifting against metal, clanking his way and opening the door. Riza Hawkeye stood before him, wearing a brown coat over her pajamas.

"Lieutenant? What's wrong?" He could see the subtle crease in her brows, something has happened, "Should I go wake up brother?"

The crease slightly deepened, his words confirming Riza's suspicions. He did not know Edward went out. "Alphonse, the colonel found Ed out on the street."

Alphonse was taken aback, "W-Why is he...Lieutenant, what's going on?"

Riza's eyes softened, "Your brother was attacked."

"What?!" Alphonse's armor shook as he abruptly steps outside, "Is he alright?! Where is he?!"

"He's in the hospital going through surgery right now." Riza motions herself to steady the shaken armored boy. Alphonse ignored Riza's action to calm him, and instead presses for a name of the hospital Edward is in. Once she gave a name, he took off.

Riza shouted for the younger brother, but Alphonse continues, dashing down the road, his thoughts swarming with the news of his brother's state. His older brother, attacked. Going through surgery. He could be dying. Someone tried to kill his older brother. What was Edward even doing out here? Why did he leave without letting Alphonse know?

Is he going to die?

No. He can't die! Alphonse can't lose him. They made a promise to get their bodies back together!

"I'm coming Ed!" Alphonse voices desperately, "Please, hang on!"

In between dusk and dawn, the sleep of East City's citizens were disturbed by the noise of a boy's substitute body, pursuing anxiously to reach his brother as the second arrival of rain lightly showers over the city.

* * *

It took a group of nurses, doctors, and Roy to hold back Alphonse from seeing his brother. By the time Riza arrived, the colonel manages to reason with the young Elric that Edward is going through surgery and has to be left by the doctors to handle him. After calming down, the younger brother and two soliders settles in the waiting room. Alphonse sat on the ground due to his body being too big to sit on any of the available chairs, his shaken hands grasped together, worrying greatly for Edward.

Riza and Roy sat beside each other, though Roy appeared calmer than Alphonse, he was itching to see what was taking so long. He needed to talk to Edward so to get a description of the attacker, Roy wanted deeply to seek out the bastard who dared harmed his subordinate. Riza is the calmest compare to her boss and Alphonse, yet she too is greatly concern for the Alchemist in surgery, after hearing more details from Roy, she's content to hunt the attacker alongside her boss and stop the perpetrator cold by a bullet through the legs.

Hours have gone by. The heels of a female nurse clapped against the tiles, "Are you all here for Edward Elric?"

Alphonse and the two officers stood up, "Yes, how is he?" Roy questioned.

The nurse smiled with assurance, "He's going to be fine. We managed to seal the wound just in time."

All tension were let loose, their shoulders slumped with relief. "Can I see him? I'm his brother," Alphonse presses.

"Of course, he should be coming to any moment now but try to go easy on him."

The group of three followed the nurse down the hall and took the stairs, reaching a room on the third floor. Entering, they see Edward resting on his back with a peaceful expression, breathing evenly. Clothed in a patient's attire, and medicine surging through the thin tube connected to a needle that is in his wrist. His automail remained attached, though looks quite beaten. Alphonse lets out a sigh, his brother is looking okay. His brother is alive. What a relief.

But even though Edward is alive, there were many unanswered questions.

"He's going to be fine, Alphonse," Riza smiles. Roy nearly scoffs.

"Of course he is, it'll take more than some shallow stab wound to keep him down." Now all he needs is for Fullmetal to wake up, and then he can start his hunt.

An answer to Roy, Edward stirs.

"Brother!" Alphonse came to his side. The Fullmetal Alchemist groaned before opening his eyes, "Al?" His mind was hazy with pain killers, his chest numb. "Where…?"

"You're in a hospital, Fullmetal," Roy answered, "I know how much you love to give us trouble, but you really scared your brother this time." Hiding his own worries or the fact that he had any, the colonel held to his snarky attitude against the boy. Edward tries to sit up, only succeeding a few inches before giving into the pillow on his back. "Do you remember what happened?"

"Sort of…" Edward rubbed his temple, "I was walking around when I heard something happening. I went to look…" He searches his memories, "These two guys were fighting at the Main Square, it looked to have been some kind of an illegal rink. One of them was using some…weird alchemy."

The memory is still fresh, and still, Edward cannot come to believe that what he saw was anything remotely alchemical.

"I kind of, accidently hit a glass bottle and they heard me. Then this blue guy lunged at me."

"Blue guy?" The colonel questions.

Edward nods, "He had blue hair, and wore a blue body suit. He came at me with a red spear," a shiver to his spine came but he bit it down, "The bastard was tough, I had to run. I tried to reach for a phone booth to get a hold of East Command, but he cut me off in an alleyway," the State Alchemist presses his palm against his chest. Though Edward is able to describe the basic that happened, there was an annoying lag in his brain that causes his brows to furrow. He was forgetting something. Hopefully, when he comes to adjust the pain killers, he'll remember things clearer.

A notepad in hand, Riza wrote down the description with ease; a man with blue hair is certainly not someone too hard to look out for. She shared a look with Roy, and a silent agreement is traded between them, they'll need their team on this and expand the search.

"Well, now that we have the look of our guy. Onto our next question," Roy pointedly looks at Edward, "What were you doing wandering at night by yourself?"

Edward flinched, "Uh…."

"He's right! Why did you go out without telling me?!" His worry and relief for his brother now put aside, Alphonse proceeds to berate the older Elric, hardly hiding his hurt at the secret action.

Edward flinches once more, mentally scolding himself for making his brother worry. "I'm sorry Al. I was too restless to go to bed, and I wanted to sort out my thoughts for a while, I didn't want to worry you so I snuck out."

"That was a stupid thing to do."

The Fullmetal Alchemist glared at the colonel.

"Regardless how skillful you are, you shouldn't be out this late, especially without telling anyone."

"Hey! I can handle myself just…Okay so this was a bad night for me!" Edward backpedals his argument once he remembers that he is in a hospital bed despite his training. His spunk decreased slightly and he looks away, "It's been bad for a while now…"

A moment of solemn silence, and the unreasonable action of the Alchemist wandering the night made much sense now.

"Try to take it easy Fullmetal," Roy resumes, "Do you remember anything else about the man who attacked you?"

Edward thought it over, and relayed any noticeable detail of the man as his brain comes to a wake.

"So this "Rider" called him "Lancer". Blue hair with a ponytail, red eyes," Roy repeats the description.

"I might remember something later, but that's the gist of it."

The colonel nods, "I'll send in a sketch artist later. Alphonse, do keep your brother from leaving here."

"Yes sir." Edward looked to Alphonse in shock at his quick agreement, his brother simply deadpans, "You're staying until you're better, Ed."

"I hate hospitals…" Edward grumpily complains.

"I'll make a call and start the search. You boys should be expecting some officers guarding your door. There's no telling if this guy might come back to finish the job."

"Great, so I'm getting babysitting too…" Edward comments unenthusiastically. Roy smirked at the boy and walks out of the room alongside Riza.

After their leave, a doctor came in and informed of Edward's condition, "You were very fortunate," he said, "Your heart wasn't pierced too deeply, and it's a miracle that you haven't lost so much blood. How are you feeling?"

"Like hell."

Taking it in stride, probably used to unhappy patients, the doctor spoke with Alphonse, "I'm gonna need a moment with him to do some check-up and make sure everything is alright."

"Alright then. Are you hungry brother? I can get you something from the cafeteria."

Edward made a face, "No thanks! Hospital food and me don't get along Al." His stomach grumbled, "…But maybe I could go for a cookie."

Alphonse chuckled. Even after almost dying, his brother remains the same.

Edward sat mumbling in contempt at his position as his doctor switches the bag of fluids for his system. The doctor began questioning how the State Alchemist feels, and with his constant answer of being fine, the doctor ends their session with another check-up in an hour and then leaves.

Edward was left with his thoughts. This has been an awful night, with nightmares haunting him, having to think over all of his regrets and realize just how many terrible mistakes he made, and to top it all on, some lunatic shoved a spear into his heart.

...Shoved a spear into his heart.

Edward frowns, settling his automail hand over his chest. The doctor informed that he only suffered a small pierce, and that not much blood was lost. Yet Edward is certain, Lancer had thrust his weapon all the way through, he's sure that the blade even exit his back, so how the hell could his heart not have been destroyed? How the hell did he survived that?

How indeed. Recalling the moment, Edward should have died. Even with Roy being able to find him quick, Edward couldn't have hoped to have been saved, and Lancer did not hold back.

 _"Sorry kid, but you weren't supposed to see that."_

 _"Some hero I am."_

 _He faded in gold particles._

Edward sat up instantly.

 _A warped color of red swirls over his chest, stretching across him, a red blade reveals. It expands to reveal the shaft, hand, and the full figure of Lancer._

Edward grips to his white shirt, remembering the details that had been lagging until now. It was incomprehensible. The way that man had appeared and went, he was like a ghost. How utterly absurd, obviously impossible, and yet it happened right before his eyes. What feats of Alchemy could do that? Was it even Alchemy? If it's nothing like what he knows best then-

Edward takes a deep breath and lies back down, resting his entire arm over himself. He has to calm down, there's got to be a reasonable explanation to what he witnessed. He needs to think, otherwise, he'll sound crazy if he explained this to Roy, he's not even sure if Alphonse would believe him.

That man's ability to manipulate the form of his existence like that, and then there was that moment when the vicious red aura swarmed his spear, it was unlike anything the State Alchemist has ever seen. What the hell was that guy? Edward stared at the ceiling in deep contemplation.

And witnessed a ripple on the concrete.

Before he could blink, Lancer comes through like raindrop and his spear shot for the Alchemist's heart, the red blade stabbed into his automail however, saving the shocked Edward from imminent death. The legs of the bed broke, the mechanics meant to support Edward toppled over.

"Damn, you're a stubborn brat!" Lancer said, complimenting really. Edward struggles to keep the blade from his heart, his automail steadily getting sliced through. The man in blue had him trapped, so the Fullmetal Alchemist goes for a kick, had it been his right leg, it wouldn't have affected Lancer, but with his left leg, he did surprise the assailant enough for Edward to twist his side and let the spear strike the ground, his automail arm had suffered, but his heart was left unscathed.

Lancer doubled back to regain his spear and Edward took his chance, quickly rolling out of bed, he felt the sting of the needle being ripped from his wrist, but ignored it as his eyes were on Lancer. He clapped his hands and slams them to the ground, Lancer backtracks when another eruption of the ground's matter appeared, avoiding it and watches it crash through the wall.

"Why are you trying to kill me?!" This was too much just to make sure Edward stays quiet, or perhaps it is beyond crucial that no one must know this man and his opponent were something that aren't quite _human_. "And how the hell did you just came through the ceiling like that?!" The man didn't just break through, his arrival was transparent. Just like before.

"You think I wouldn't kill you if I told you?" Lancer responds, "Look, this isn't anything personal, but I can't let you give out anymore of what you saw."

He had been listening, and he had been debating whether to just jump in for the kill and then run off, but Lancer decided to be patient, he waited for the right moment. Unfortunately he couldn't kill the brat in one strike, the luck of the boy was better than his own, which isn't saying much. But damn did the kid got spunk!

Edward slaps the ground, manipulating the matters and summoning a spear. "You think yourself a spearman? Not a bad design." Lancer quipped before his ferocity comes through, "But that weapon of yours will be dust once it gets a taste of mine."

He lunged for the Alchemist.

* * *

The phone hung back with a click. Roy had given the word about what happened to his team, at first they were speaking rather groggily, but once he told what happened to Edward, the team woke instantly, ready to return what happened to their State Alchemist ten-fold. As brash and irritatingly arrogant the kid can be, practically all of Eastern Command cared for him.

Riza had caught up with him once he ended his call, the team have been given the perpetrator's description and would be on the lookout, it's becoming a hunt for two men - Scar and a man with blue hair.

"Let's go Lieutenant."

Riza clipped her heels together, "Sir."

But their mission will have to be put aside. Destruction against concrete booms a few levels above them, the soldiers and those around them flinched at the sudden sound, feeling the faint vibration quickly crawled over their bodies. Roy looked to Riza, and they shared the same understanding that something more than problematic has happened. A dreadful idea concerning their young State Alchemist.

They ran for the stairs to return to Edward's room.

Alphonse had just gathered the snacks for his hungry brother when he too heard vicious activities happening on the third level, and he instantly thought of one person, "Brother!" He dropped the plate, cookies within their packets crumbled.

Roy slips on his glove with the transmutation circle drawn on the backhand, Riza has her finger on the pistol's trigger. The disturbance grew louder the closer they become. A grand noise like the wall being broken through, and afterwards, a chilling silence. The two officers reached Edward's designated room, they each took a side of the door, Roy made the initiative and kicked it open, his index finger and thumb pressed together, ready to snap and summon his flames. Riza aimed her pistol, sharp eyes surveying the room, looking for the perpetrator as well for Edward.

As they had suspected, evidence of a fight were distinct within the mess of a room. The bed completely torn apart and it's fluffy innards scattered everywhere along with broken pieces of the medical equipment, the floor severely damaged with it's tiles broken in chunks. The most noticeable show however was the large open hole through the wall to where a window once was, the sight of rain pouring. A makeshift small bridge, clearly hastily made, reaches halfway towards the building beside the hospital. The window in the second floor broken through.

"Dammit!" Roy had considered the chance that Edward's attacker would come back to finish the job, but he didn't think the guy would be this bold. Adding salt to the wound, it was done while he, his Lieutenant, and Alphonse were still present. The Flame Alchemist intends to make this act be the bastard's most regrettable one.

Alphonse had arrived, and gasped at the sight. "Alphonse, through there! They couldn't have gone far!" Roy shouted the young alchemist before he ran out of the room, his lieutenant chasing behind. Alphonse proceeds to the room's new open window and jumps down, his body would be far too heavy for the small bridge to hold up. Upon landing, he began sprinting for the building. Apologizing to the awaken residents stepping out after hearing a ruckus, Alphonse searches the entire second floor, and finds another hole broken through. From here, there will only be less and less signs of where Edward may have gone to, but Alphonse is determined to find him.

Another leap through, Alphonse resumes his search, "Hang on Ed!"

The rain repeatedly tapped against his skin, Edward's chest throbbed, the stitching coming close to break, due to his forceful movements to escape his attempted killer, or the sight of the red spear brought painful remembrance to his wound. It would be correct to assume either. Constantly transmuting boundaries to slow down his attacker and ignoring the pebbles sticking to the skin under his foot.

All there is for him to do in order to survive is to run, the weapon he had made broke against Lancer's strength, his martial arts skills ineffective, and his Alchemy mildly hindering Lancer. The man just wasn't human, he was too strong, and the idea that he might use whatever strange Alchemy he was about to unleash against Rider _terrified_ him.

There's got to be a way to beat him. Edward thought up many possibilities he can try to beat Lancer, he could try and find Roy and Riza, his brother can help too, he is sure that with the four of them fighting this guy together they'll be able to win. But trying to backtrack would have him face Lancer, and though Edward is reckless, he's not stupid.

But maybe if he can somehow trap Lancer even for a brief moment, then that would give Edward enough time.

Recognizing the street he was in, the State Alchemist heads for the library. He's sitting duck if he remains out in the open like this, he'll get somewhere that would provide him a better advantage. The public library is like a maze for those who are new to it. Though once he goes inside, there's no doubt that if Lancer is perceptive, he'll track Edward down by the wet footprints. Which is what the State Alchemist needed to happen.

Bursting through the doors, Edward dashed for the bookshelves, and turning corners that may seem randomized, but are actually calculative. Edward has escaped the Lancer's sight. The spearman enters the library, he stops and observes his surrounding before gazing at the floor. Distinct wet footprints caused by the rain lead a trail to where the boy had run off too. What a desperate idiot, so thought Lancer.

He continues his hunt, following the foot trail into another room, he finds himself down the hall spotted the running Alchemist enter a room. He follows after, and finds the Alchemist trapped in this oddly empty room. It seems the boy's luck ran out. Lancer steps inside, and lunges for the Alchemist.

"I got you!"

Oddly enough, it wasn't Lancer who said this, despite having every right to. Edward swiftly dodged the spear, having quickly assessed the man's apparent habit to always strike for the heart. With a grin, his clapped hands slams against the wooden floor. The ground once again rose, Lancer merely needed to dodge them. "That's not gonna work now kid-"

His feet suddenly sunk into the earth, "The hell-?!"

Having been accustomed to East City for a few years, Edward spent most of his time in the library, one would say he knows this place better than he knows Eastern Command. Constant research for a particular legend, he would wander around the library to see if there were any hidden sections the librarian failed to mention. It was then he found this room, which currently is going through renovation for a flaw that only occurs whenever there was rain.

Rain would gather like pool over the roof, and fall through the corners like a thin stream, and mud would form beneath the boards. Truly, to fix this problem would be the work of an alchemist, but it was a problem that was just discovered, and everything had to be moved before any work could be done. Edward himself had offered to fix this problem, though with recent events, this hasn't been on his mind in a while.

Now, he decides to put it off until another day. With the floor manipulated to roll and reveal the muddy ground, Lancer sunk in deep like quicksand up to his waist, he could have gone out easily, but Edward made it difficult for him. The alchemist solidified the mud into a solid ground, like trapping him in concrete, and then manipulated the wood to surround him, covering his head at a triangular trap and basically blinding him.

Of course, it was hard enough having to know that this man could fade in and fade out of existence, but what Edward needed to do was keep him preoccupied and escape with his life. With this done, Edward bolted out of the library through the back door. This time, he'll have to be careful. He can't just ran out in the street like before, somehow Lancer had seen him, so if Ed takes precaution - make twists and turns, leave little evidence of where he went, then surely he will lose the Lancer.

Edward has a feeling that by this point, Roy would call in back-up. Going to the hospital is an option, but one which the Lancer himself will think of as well. He's sure that his brother must be out looking for him, so that will be what Edward will do. Though he has no idea where Alphonse is, it's an apparent thing between the Elric brothers that they always regroup no matter the situation.

Edward reaches a stairway that lead down to the river. Rather than waste any time, he hops over the railing and lands on his automail leg - as much of a sinful reminder his replacement limbs are to him, they certainly do have their perks.

He takes a deep breath, the rain has yet to cease, "There's no way he'll know where I am now."

"Don't bet on it."

Edward gasped, and threw himself forward. The red spear pierced the ground the alchemist once stood, Lancer landed without trouble.

"H-How...how the hell did you find me?"

"I have a knack in tracking people down," Lancer was trained in the arts of Runes, and with these spells, one of them includes the ability to locate a person even if they were far, far away. Even with little evidence offered, Lancer will eventually find his prey. Escaping him was never a possibility from the start. "You sure are a hell of a fighter, but this is the end for you."

Edward desperately transmutes another attack, rows of spikes shot from the ground to strike the Lancer. He constantly defends himself again and again, but his Alchemy, though a nuisance, is now hardly much to the warrior. With one last transmutation that was just a wall, Edward ran.

His wall broke through easily, "Your heart is mine!"

Edward sprinted with all his might, a few of his stiches broke and he bled again. Gazing behind, he watches in fear as the impending doom come as Lancer thrust his spear. This is it. This is sure death.

A figure clad in silver jumps over the railings, landed in between them, and clashed the red spear with a silver sword.

Edward trips and tumbled across the gravel. He stares in shock at the new arrival, not Mustang, Riza, nor Alphonse.

It was by a girl who looked so familiar. Her blonde hair in a thick braid danced in the wind, her silver armor shimmered as the rain made contact. Lancer had backed away, eyeing the new arrival with a frown. Whoever this girl is, she seems to share the same strength as Lancer, how else could she have simply strike away his attack? The girl observed the assailant, and once confirming that he will decidedly study her for a moment, she takes the time to look at the boy she saved a second time.

"Are you alright?" She asked kindly, her pink bangs glinted.

With her face revealed, the Fullmetal Alchemist remembers. "You're...you're that girl from Liore."

Jeanne D'Arc. A name he hadn't thought of in a while, but instantly recalled it for her impression on him was rather impactful.

 _"Oh Lord, I beseech you..."_ The faint recollection of a girl with noticeable pink bangs holding his body with a wounded heart. This was her, she was the one who saved Edward from death.

"Who the hell are you?" Lancer questioned, his senses telling him to be on his guard against the girl. Of course, that's not saying much since he has to be when up against enemy Servants, and this girl is in fact a Servant, but something doesn't seem to fit. Looking at her, she did not strike him as a Saber, or any of the seven classes. What's more, her Magic Resistance is incredible, when he thrust his spear for the boy and instead was intersected by this girl, the power in his weapon dulled considerably.

Jeanne looks back at spearman "I am a Servant of the Ruler Class, Jeanne D'Arc. Lancer, cease your attack on this boy! He is only a bystander!"

Edward recollected himself and starts getting back on his feet, cautiously eyeing the two people before him.

"Ruler huh? So you're the mediator," that makes sense, Lancer understood what a Ruler Class Servant is, and what this Class is entitled to. With many privileges so long as she upholds her duty as Ruler, a Servant that must act to ensure the Holy Grail War is progressing properly. "There's not much of a choice, he's seen me battle against Rider."

"Killing him and leaving him out in the open was unnecessary, and he works with the authority of this country, his death would only bring more unwanted attention," and Jeanne simply did not want Edward to die. "Where is your Master?"

"He's not here at the moment," Lancer answered rather vaguely, and before he could explain further, the carrier of his "anchor" spoke to him telepathically-like.

 _"Retreat, Lancer."_

It seems his Master would not want him to cross Ruler. Being the keeper of his _Seals_ , Lancer must obey.

"...Well, you've done what you wanted," Lancer drops his defense position and leaps to the railings. A simple leap and yet he manages to make such a height, it baffled Edward.

"Has your Master asked for you? Lead me to him."

"I can't. He prefers to keep himself anonymous, even from you," The spearman glares at the girl, though such a gaze would be enough to unnerve even the Fullmetal Alchemist, Jeanne was unaffected by them, "Don't bother using your _privilege_ to get me to do otherwise. My Master has no problem cancelling them with his own Seals. Don't follow either. I won't hesitate to fight you." He glances at Edward who tensed under his attention, "Looks like your luck is a lot stronger than I gave you credit for. You better know how to repay that girl for saving you." With that as his parting words, he leaves.

Jeanne frowns at Lancer's leave, for his Master not wishing to see her can only be seen as suspicious, that this Master has something to hide. If Lancer is true to his word, than she will be fighting against the spearman if she wishes to pursue, it is certainly a thing to consider. She feels that there is _someone_ who will give trouble, and her intuition - mended with her **Revelation** skill, is never wrong.

One of the reasons for a Ruler Class Servant to be summoned is due to an oddity occuring in the Holy Grail War, another reason would be a threat - either to the war, or because of the war. The amount of Servants there are is justifiably concerning, but it may not be the only problem. It was a faint yet unrelenting feeling, there is something, or someone who proves themselves to be an opposing force that will endanger everyone outside of the war. One of the reasons for a Ruler to come is if there is an opposing force that threatens this country - and to an extent, the whole world.

Perhaps it was Lancer's Master, it could be someone else, or maybe there are more than one threat left to be revealed. She should give chase in order to find out.

But she must deal with the boy first. She felt her arm grasped, not at all tight, but then again she is a Servant. Jeanne looks to Edward, the Alchemist's hair is nearly soaked, Jeanne worries that he'll catch a cold or if his automail would rust in this condition. But her main attention lies within his eyes, he held a stern expression that of course reveals his continuing recovery from escaping a near death situation, and one that desires an explanation, "What the hell is going on?"

Jeanne considers her options, she could have this boy's memory altered, then take him to the church for protection. However, her thoughts avert when her eyes fell to where the wound is, and finds blood staining Edward's new shirt, "You're bleeding! We have to get you back to the hospital!"

"Forget that! I want you to tell me who that guy was, how you know him, and what this Lancer, Ruler, Master thing is about!"

"I-"

The tires of multiple vehicles screeches as they sharply turn around the block across the river, and more beyond the railings, Jeanne instinctively grabbed Edward's arm, acting to protect the Alchemist again. Vehicle surrounds them, at their stop, many officers came out and pistols were drawn, "Freeze! Release the Fullmetal Alchemist!"

 _Oh dear_ , so thought the troubled Ruler.

"Fullmetal!"

"Ed!"

The boy called to turned and spotted the colonel, lieutenant, and Alphonse coming down the stairs. Roy and Alphonse were surprised when they recognized Jeanne, the Flame Alchemist diverts his attention however back to his subordinate. "Are you okay Fullmetal?"

"Yeah, I'm alright," Edward started, after a pause, he looks to Jeanne, "Thanks to her that is."

To show herself not an enemy as best as she could, Jeanne releases Edward, though he has yet to do the same, "Hey colonel, can you tell these guys to lower their weapons? It's a rude way to compensate Jeanne after she saved me," for that, Edward can't say he's ungrateful, but Jeanne knows something, and whatever she knows that gives reason to why Edward was nearly murdered by that spearman, then he wants to know too. "But we shouldn't let her off the hook either, she did had a chat with _Lancer_. Calling herself _Ruler_."

"Is that so?" Roy's tone was low, his eyes narrowed at Jeanne, "Then maybe we should also have a talk, back at East Command."

 _Oh dear..._ Indeed, this has become a lot more complicated.

* * *

 **More than one anomaly is apparent. What danger lurks with Amestris the center of it all?**

 **A/N: Hello readers! Thank you for taking the time to read my new story. This idea has been on my mind for a while now ever since I've finished watching FMA: Brotherhood, and read Fate/Apocrypha Light Novel and I could no longer resist not to post this.**

 **The curtains rise for _In Exchange For A Miracle_ , get ready for a journey of alchemy, magecraft, friendship, romance, drama, comedy(the best that I can muster), and action! **

**Please Leave a Kind and Honest Review.**


	3. A War For A Wish

**Happy New Year Everyone! As my gift to you, here is the next chapter of my new story. I'll be moving on to updating my other stories after this one, but if I work quick while still giving my best, I'll get right back here as soon as I can. I'm so excited for this story, literally I'm so happy I posted this, and I hope readers will be looking forward for more.**

 **I am so grateful for all the reviews, you guys pointed out a lot of good stuff and I hope you will keep at it. For your questions, all I can say is that I don't want to give too much spoilers, but feel free to make guesses about where this story is going, I would love to read what all of you think is going to happen.**

 **Additionally, there is a surprise in this chapter which you're about to find out once you start reading.**

 **What happened in the last chapter is definitely a call back to Fate/Stay Night, you'll probably see some more in the future. Expect some twists as well, believe me, the FMA: Brotherhood storyline is the main setting, but there is going to be a lot more happening.**

 **With all that said, on with the story!**

* * *

Chapter 3: A War For A Wish

Central City.

Late after midnight, all was quiet at the Tohmerson Estate. It has always been so, with only one member living there. A dark mansion with castle-like structure and triangular shaped roofs, it was somewhat small compare to the Armstrong or Bradley homes, but large enough to house a family of four that held wealth. A man once owned this place, he was publically reclusive yet polite, and respected by a certain group although originally his lineage was expected to be nothing particularly remarkable. He and his wife had passed away, with the detail of their passing remaining anonymous save for a few, one who understood what could have happened, and one who knew the truth.

A girl in her teens sat in a fine cushion chair held up by finely carved wooden legs, silently looking at the drizzle through her bedroom window. Her attire is of a red blouse with white sleeves and a brown skirt, white socks reaching to her knees ad black buckle shoes. She does not plan to go out, but it would be rather peculiar for her "guest" to arrive while she is in her sleep wear. _A Tohmerson must always present oneself with elegance_ , her father would lecture.

The telephone rung throughout the spacious, cold home. The girl stood up. Stepping out of the bedroom, she reached for the contraption in the hallway and picks up the receiver. Not a word slips past her lips, but the caller knew she was there.

 _"Have you completed your preparations, Tohmerson?"_ A deep voice spoke through, _"You are certain to go through with this?"_

"Is that all you called me for?" Riley Tohmerson huffed a laugh.

 _"A formality,"_ the man continues smoothly, his actual concern is non-existent, _"But I am curious, unless you failed to comprehend the amount of participants there will be. This is your last chance to second guess yourself."_

"Don't insult me. Even with this…anomaly," to which she nearly ripped her hair out in disbelief once she had received word of this by her legal guardian, "My efforts for the last ten years have not been for nothing. I have my duty to uphold my pride as a Tohmerson and as a Magus."

 _"Then you best start tonight. Regardless of the expansion, there may not be any Heroic Spirits left for you to summon."_

"Will _that Servant_ arrive soon?"

 _"It seems Ruler has been keeping herself busy investigating this anomaly, and having herself involved with the battles occurring nearby, but she will eventually find her way to Central in two or three days."_

Riley silently accepted the news.

 _"Well, I'll leave you to it then. I certainly hope you will not somehow make any mistake. This is a genuine concern of mine,"_ yet when one knows the man for a while, his true character, they would have caught on a distinct tone as if he were smirking in amusement. Restraining herself from cursing this "priest" out, Riley returned the receiver to it's placement with a click, ending the call.

The ticking of the clocks echoed within the household, and in the next minute, Riley Tohmerson knew it was time. She did not waste a breath of hesitance before proceeding to her father's study room. Upon entering, the girl pushes aside the desks and chairs, and lastly rolled up the carpet. What was revealed hiding underneath it was something that would be mistaken for a Transmutation Circle at a first glance, but it is in fact something else entirely. Not done by the hands of an Alchemist, but by a Magus.

Many Alchemists would call this absurd if they found out what this is, however, for a person like Riley and what she is, it is a serious matter. What she is about to do will defy Alchemy, an act that is like the taboo, but as oppose to the constant result of that action which was only failure, this will bring forth the desired effect. For even though it is impossible to resurrect the dead, if it does not bring forth a soul, but gathers all the information that belonged to this "someone", then it will be close enough.

It is not absolute, but this is as close to a successful Human Transmutation as it can get. She knows, because her father had done it, as well did six others. This summoning has been done successfully for every sixty years, the only difference now is that this shall be done fifty years early. She is not a grieving daughter trying to bring back her deceased parents - she has long accepted their deaths(so she continues to tell herself and others), she is not a desperate lover who cries for the return of her soul-mate, she is summoning a being that is best described as a weapon in human form. A Heroic Spirit. A Servant.

Riley Tohmerson is a participant for the Holy Grail War, as was her father.

The Holy Grail War; a simple yet brutal matter in battling against the ghosts of heroes and talented Magi, for a wish that is promised to be omnipotent. You could make any wish, be it to grant a miracle or use it for destructive means. It is also a gateway towards the one place all Magi, and even Alchemists crave to have a total grasp of. The Alchemists calls it _The Truth_ , The Magi refers to it as _The Root_. It is the source of all knowledge, which her own family had sought for generations.

In order for one to participate in the Holy Grail, or even if they did not personally wish to enter the competition, the chosen candidate - the Master, will receive red marks of three symbols called **Command Spells**. The marks will have many forms and may appear in any place of the body - generally though, they would appear at the back of the hand. They are like a winning lottery ticket given by the Holy Grail due to the candidates worthiness. Riley Tohmerson had earned hers days prior, and she held on to them even with the sudden increase in Master Rosters. She will not be intimidated out of the war that easily.

She gathered the materials needed for the summoning, to call forth the otherworldly being. A Heroic Spirit is a powerful figure famed for whatever history or legend their names have been carved upon. Fighting against another Master in order to obtain the Holy Grail would simply not be enough, in order for the Holy Grail to activate, it requires sacrifices - that is the purpose of these Servants. Of course, she can't expect to summon heroes she may have heard, that is the uniqueness of this, something which nearly every Amestrian would find it unbelievable.

She is not going to call for a hero in this world's history, but a hero from the history of another world. This was no recent change, this is simply what's done for the last four Grail Wars. Besides the fact that the other world held a richer history, this is because at the time when the term Magi was born outside of Amestris, the knowledge of Mystery and True Magic was brought forth by a figure who obtained this information from "slipping through" different dimensions. This figure is simply known as The Great Master of True Magic.

Six Servants must die in order for the Holy Grail to activate, and it will grant the respective desires of both Master and Servant - or at least, that was the system originally. There were supposed to be Seven Masters with each their own Servant respectively, yet with the current anomaly, perhaps it will accept more than six deaths and wait until the sole pair of the Holy Grail War remains. However long that will take…

 _This is all wrong…_ So thought Riley, why were there so many Masters chosen? The very thought that these Masters would bring forth the same amount of Servants terrifies her all for this country's sake. Yet Riley can't busy herself to investigate why this is happening, to look into this is the job of that Servant; Ruler. For a Master like Riley, it just can't be helped. She will go through with this and fight how ever many opponents there are.

The materials were all set. In each corner of the summoning circle lies flasks with certain ingredients within; the few materials that makes up a human body. It is not to actually create the body, the Servants can manifest on their own through the gathering of Prana from the Holy Grail, these materials were here so to guide the summoned Servant to her place, the summoning circle and her voice would not be enough, the Servant is a foreigner of this world, and they need something to grasp this new plane other then her Command Seals. Like finding the handle of a door in a dark place.

Riley nods to herself, "Preparations; done." She looks at the clock on the wall, the time was not at all accurate, but she knew that. It was tampered purposefully through Magecraft, a test left by her father. "Time; check." Her eyes return to the ritual, "Alright, everything is ready. With this, I'll summon a Saber without a doubt."

Sabers are the most powerful class in the Holy Grail War, added with Riley's mastery in long-range combat through her spells, she and her Servant will be a force to be reckon with. She stretched out her arm, the Command Seals on her backhand visible, the gems crafted for a Magus within her palm are ready to melt at her command. She closed her eyes.

And begins.

 _ **"Water. Carbon. Ammonia. Lime, succumb to the origin. Phosphorus. Salt. Saltpeter. Sulfur, to the cornerstone. Let my Great Master of True Magic guide me."**_

Drops of the gems in her hand made contact, a faint vibration emits from the circle.

 _ **"The Gate of our world, unlocked. The Door that reaches to their kingdom, open. Let the Void between the Gates be the bridge. Let my voice amplify and reach the shadow of their soul.**_ "

Because that is what these heroes are, although definitely powerful, they are copies of their true selves. That is what makes this resurrection not absolute.

 _ **"Fill. Fill. Fill. Fill. Fill. Repeat five times. When each is filled, destroy it. Set."**_

The ritual lit up, her surroundings trembled.

 ** _"-Heed my words. Your body shall serve me, my fate is in your sword. In accordance with the Holy Grail, if you abide by this feeling, this reason, then answer. If you share my ambition, honor my request, pierce through the fabric of our two realities, and become a part of this world."_**

The Servant is coming.

 _ **"Hear my oath. I will become all that is good in this world, I will slay all that is evil in this world. You, seven heavens clad in three words of power, arrive from the circle of binding, guardian of the scales!**_ "

The room is encased in light.

* * *

He sat alone on a hill. Thousands, and _thousands_ of bladed weapons all around him. Forgeries, and this person is the blacksmith. He is a man, but not one who can be considered human. He is not of divine birth nor a monster. He is a mortal man, but long ago he had lost most of his humanity. The day he chose to follow this path of eternal damnation.

He is a weapon, his body made of infinite blades.

His workshop is his mind, his blood is the fire that ignites the forge.

A counter guardian, a being who's tasked to guard the world. That is what he is.

And his whole life was nothing but…

Ah. A summoning, he's being summoned. The Holy Grail War? Yes...this is very familiar. **Processing…**

"...Hm. Another world?" So were the thoughts of the weapon, "Very well. No matter what domain, I will answer." For he is a being who always responds to anyone's call.

Transferring from the place he had resign to the new world was rather odd and interesting. He came into a void, and heard the sarcastic words from this figure in white. Whether it expected him to respond or not, the "spirit" could not do so even if he wanted to. Like a wandering soul, though he is aware of his surroundings, his senses cannot be solidified until he reaches the new world where he will have a body.

Once he went through the second doorway, the whole new world is revealed. Information came to him. A mystical-like science known as Alchemy a norm in this dimension, where Alchemists roam, and the knowledge of Magi is secretive like the world he hailed from. His battlefield will be in a country called Amestris, and info about the Holy Grail War swarmed within his mind…

What's this? Oh, it seems there will be more than six opponents he'll have to fight against. Someone has tampered with the Master-Servant System long ago. Ruler will be expected in this war to ensure stability. Well, as unorthodox as all of this appears to be, he'll adapt.

As the Servant Archer; Counter Guardian EMIYA.

The summoning is completed. He arrived in the midst of the clearing dust and fading light. Now he must formally introduce himself to his Master, though even if he were to reveal his true name, it would matter little to the person who is not familiar with his world's history, and additionally, he is not known as a beloved hero or infamous villain in his dimension. His name is not written on anything but the minds of those who knew him, and they were all dead. He'll have to explain this thoroughly along with his abilities. There's no guarantee win, but Archer can proclaim his refusal to lose, even as he comes to understand how heavily decreased his skillsets have become upon being summoned. He'll just have to work around this and make due.

He opens his eyes to meet his Master.

 _…Rin?_ Archer's eyes widen, behind his cool stature, he had jolted in surprise. Memories of the girl he knew came like a flood, yet…

No. This girl, she does in fact look like the esteemed student and secretly demonic yet undoubtedly talented Rin Tohsaka. But he only needed a second longer to stare, and he came to conclude that this was not that girl. As oppose to being a Japanese descent, the girl in front of him looked more European or Western. Yet, the way she held herself, her hair and blue eyes, everything about her tells him of Tohsaka. So if this person is indeed not Rin Tohsaka, then she is someone who's very much like her.

EMIYA has heard of theories of alternate universes, where if one person exist, another just like that person existed in another realm. One man had confirmed this in EMIYA's world, as the old man traveled through dimensions time to time. With that idea, then it is easier to understand that this girl may not share the name of the girl he knew, but may share the same personality and spirit.

 _If that is so, then my bad habit will appear,_ his bad habit being the incredible lack of control to tease the girl. He inwardly smirks in calm anticipation.

"…You're an Archer." The girl quickly confirmed, reading his stats like looking through a book in her mind.

"You are correct, I presume you are my Master?" Archer questions.

"…Go back."

Archer blinked, "I'm sorry?"

"Go back and change into a Saber. Or get me another Servant with that class."

"…I don't think that's how this works."

The response he received is the true character of the girl, "What the hell, why didn't I get a Saber?!" She drops to her knees and picked up a flask in each hand, "I did everything right! I should have summoned one!" She peers through the glass with frustration.

The corner of Archer's lips quirks up briefly before he proceeds with a neutral expression, "Is that so? And you are certain you prepared the ritual correctly?"

"Of course I have!" Riley shot up and glared at her Servant as if this was his fault, "There's not a single mistake made here!"

"You spoke the chant fluently?"

"Yes!"

"There's not a symbol misplaced in the circle?"

"What do you think I am, inept? This would never have worked if it was that!"

"A proper catalyst?"

"I didn't have one, but it shouldn't have mattered since I was reaching beyond another world whose heroes I know nothing about, it wouldn't have mattered if I brought a relic." Though that is true, it is not always the case, if one were to make a lucky guess that the relic a Master uses bears similarities to a relic in the other world, the hero who's connected to that relic would be summoned. Even the Master themselves can be used as a catalyst, and the hero summoned would bear some similarities to the summoner regarding personality, mindset, or past.

Archer thoughtfully rubs his chin, "What about the time? From what I've gathered, to summon a Servant with the desired class…"

Riley shook her head, "The time is not the problem," She whipped her hand towards the clock, "It's thirty minutes faster but I already caught on to that. It's 2 A.M. now which is the perfect time for me to-"

"And you are sure it's thirty minutes?"

Silence fills the room for a brief moment, "What?"

"I'm only saying, but is it possible that the time it is now, is not as you think?" This girl for her talent as a Magus would certainly notice a clock to be thirty minutes faster, but what if it wasn't actually thirty minutes, but an hour? That would mean that she did not perform the summoning at the correct time at all. A minor, yet crucial mistake that could make all the difference.

Or not, if what Archer carries makes this summoning inevitable, even for a possibly different yet similar person as the girl he knew.

Riley took a long look at the clock in this office, and then abruptly left the room, slamming the door behind her. There was a way to confirm if his words were true. She abruptly left her house, quickly pushed the fence gate to open, and ran a block to look upon the post clock that is placed at the corner of the sidewalk across the street.

It is approximately 1 A.M.

Archer waited in the same place he arrived. He heard Riley's return and her entering another room. With a grin pulling further, he listens to the girl's scream muffled through the walls.

Ah yes, this girl is very much like her. _I'm going to have fun with this_ , so thought Archer.

The magus returns to the study room, red of embarrassment coloring her cheeks, and calmly sat in a chair as if her earlier freak out did not occur. Perhaps Archer should not mention he heard then, yet.

"Well, regardless, I managed to summon a Servant," she rests her elbow on her knee and cups her chin, miffed by this turn of events but decided to bear through with it.

"I'll admit, I was a little offended. Sabers are powerful, but you'll soon find that I'm just as capable." Downgraded sure, but Archer is not a weapon without reason.

"I don't doubt whatever skill you may posses...well, you could have been a little bit better, and this just throws off my original strategy," Riley huffs, "But I can still work with this. Firstly, let's introduce ourselves," after fully recollecting herself, she stands up and greeted the Archer, "My name is Riley Tohmerson. A Master participating in the Holy Grail War, and I am _apparently_ the one who summoned you."

Riley Tohmerson. So he's not far off in there being alternate personas. But in that regard, he wonders if _that boy_ exists in this world as well. The idea of _him_ being around made Archer frown subtly.

"So, who are you supposed to be in your world?"

Good grief, even her attitude is like Rin. He didn't know where to laugh or cry with mirth or distress. However, her question did have him to consider himself. If it was to keep himself at an advantage, it would not matter whether he hid his name or not, this world nor his knew who he was, so he should be okay with revealing the name burned to his soul, while the name of _who he used to be_ is left in the dust.

Riley suddenly rebuked herself with a shake of her head, "Well, I'm sure you'll be able to tell me another time," To have an entire history lesson of whatever hero this man may be would take time, she'll question his identity tomorrow alongside recreating strategies surrounding having an Archer class and whatever ability he has, "Right now I have to confirm, have you been informed about the current state of the war?"

"I have. There are numerous enemies we will be dealing with surpassing seven."

"That's right. We'll have to discuss more about this tomorrow morning."

"This is unexpected though," Archer comments, "True, a battlefield will have many soldiers, but these are Heroic Spirits. Will you be able to handle the pressure?"

Riley frowns, "Why ask me that?"

"You may find it safer to hide in a vault, and allow me to deal with the Servants," Archer suggested, a test to her resolve, but also gives Archer an excuse to do as he feels it appropriate.

Riley immediately declines, "No. I've been chosen as Master, and I have my pride as a Tohmerson on the line here. To hide myself away would be putting my training to shame."

"You must have an important wish for the Grail then."

Riley gently shook her head, "I don't have a personal wish. I'm a competitive person, Archer. For this war, all I want is to win, and in the meanwhile I get the Grail, it'll be my trophy," this lead to piquing her interest about Archer, since he is summoned for the Holy Grail War, he must have a goal. "What about you? What is your wish?"

"I have none," Archer answers truthfully, of course, since he curses his fate so much, one would expect his wish would be to avert his way to hell, but it was something he had long ago accepted to be impossible, unless he were given the chance itself. But quite frankly, he has his suspicions against the Grail.

After all, _it was the cause for his home's destruction_.

Riley blinked in surprise, "Really?"

Archer nods, "As of now, I will follow the order of my Master. That is the duty of a Servant."

The girl tilted her head, curiously studying her Servant, and shrugs in acceptance to his answer, "Alright. If you're ready to follow my orders, then follow this first one; clean this room up."

Archer flinched, and the girl smiled humorously, "You caused a mess when you came, it's only natural that this will be your responsibility. I want everything practically shining by the time the sun comes up."

It was an order that is undeniably degrading, yet Archer has no particular complaint following it. Still, the Servant sighed, "Very well."

Riley nodded, satisfied, "Good, then I'll see you in the morning." She suddenly pauses, "...We'll have a visit with the Overseer of the Church tomorrow, and after we've done that, I'll show you around the city. Beside the potential it has to be a battlefield, it must be strange having to come to another dimension." No matter how cold-hearted Riley wishes herself to come off as, she's rather soft in reality, and her concern for the Servant like the faint wind which she would rather not have Archer hear.

Her words may have a hint of truth to them, but it is a good break for Archer, escaping the hell if only a brief moment, "As a Servant, whether it be in any dimension, I will fight."

Riley thoughtfully takes another long look at her Servant before nodding, "Good to hear that. Goodnight then, Archer."

Archer nods at her, "Likewise, Master."

And so, the Holy Grail War obtains a new opposing pair.

* * *

East City. Morning.

The mysterious girl, whom Edward had claimed to bear two names at his first meeting with her in Liore. His rescuer, but also an undeniable suspicious person, who in some way knew what occurred involving two Class named fighters, and the reason for one man's attempt to murder the Fullmetal Alchemist. She would have been left off had she explained herself, she certainly wasn't a devious criminal as far as any man who had eyes could see, but she refused to.

Though none of them would understand how and why, the girl would have no doubt been left off due to a certain skill of hers. With her firmly activating it, then there would be no stopping her - except for two particular people. Even though they were affected, their desire for answers refuses to let her go. As it was for Cornello who feared retribution from the citizens of Liore, Edward and the colonel named Roy Mustang had the strength of their stubborn nature. Thus here she is, sitting in the interrogation room, silent towards all questions, and what the purpose was for last night's fight.

Roy frowns through the window glass where he sees Jeanne unflinching to the tactics of his interrogators, while he remains unseen with the glass looking nothing but pitch black from inside the room. She looked tired, but her will remains unbreakable. All attempts to get answer from this girl have been unsuccessful. Not even the threat of having her stay in this room all morning and afternoon caused any reaction. No interrogator of theirs can crack through this steel wall she's build up other than gathering that she is a wanderer, supposedly has no family, and is somehow involved with the mysterious figure whom she protected Edward from, which she refuse to explain about.

Perhaps refusal to cooperate is not the right statement, when she was pressed to why she will not answer, her words were "I cannot", as if it was an lack of obligation to give any explanation, not that she does not want to. Almost as if she is ordered to keep quiet. He was no Maes Hughes, but having picked up a couple of things as a soldier and officer, he can catch some details on a person. Yet even so, this girl did not strike him as a hardened criminal, perhaps she's that good, but the air about her, this sense of strong will.

She reminds him of Fullmetal.

Speaking of the Alchemist, he was sent back to the hospital to deal with his wound that was forced open, despite his insistence to see the interrogation. He wants an explanation just as much as Roy does, but the Flame Alchemist can promise that he will not let this girl go until he gets answers.

So with that in mind, he decides to question the girl herself.

Jeanne merely acknowledged the entering Alchemist with a neutral look. Roy takes a seat in front of a table that separates him and the girl. Slouching back in his seat and resting his hands over his stomach with his fingers intertwined, he quietly stares at the girl as to intimidate, but he received a similar imposing look from her. He couldn't help but be impressed.

She's not a normal citizen, that he can definitely tell.

"Jeanne, was it?" He starts.

A nod. Well, good start.

"Do you mind telling me what you know about what happened last night?"

"I cannot answer that."

He frowns, "Why not?"

She did not say. Could it actually be that someone ordered this girl not to? Was she actually a soldier? Something like Edward? But Roy has not heard of this girl, yet the guess of her to be a part of the military did not leave his mind.

For she certainly has the posture like one. Or rather, her show of inner strength is like that of a soldier.

"You know, I really appreciate you saving my subordinate, but I can't treat you if you won't answer my questions," he thought being a little charming would help. But that seems to have no affect either. "Who was that man you spoke with?"

No response.

He decided to change tactics, "If you don't tell us what you know, this is going to look bad for you. It can be easily assumed that someone like you have as much a part in this as it did for that man name Lancer. You saved a State Alchemist, rather fortunate on it's own that you found him, just as it was when you saved him again a second time, as if you were always nearby."

Roy began to imply that if Jeanne does not fess up, she may be prosecuted for being a possible accomplice who acted only to look good. Of course, it was a stretch, but Roy needed something from the girl, and if she doesn't cooperate, she will be taken to jail. "I can help you clear that up, but I need you to talk to me."

"I cannot answer your questions."

Even with the warning that her lack of cooperation will result her in imprisonment, Jeanne did not waver in the slightest. Of course, this was nothing new to the girl who in life was accused, insulted, and eventually thrown into a cell while awaiting for her end. That was harsh however, and this is hardly anything to her.

Roy held back a sigh, and before he could continue, he at last heard from the girl.

"You will not release me until I do so?"

Roy answers, "That's how it is."

This certainly is quite a predicament for Jeanne, she should have run while she had the chance, but the problem is that her face was seen, the face that belonged to Rose. If Jeanne ran from these authority figures, she would most likely be condemned as a criminal, which is not a problem for the Servant with a temporary existence. She would deal with this not exactly easily, but it wouldn't deter her journey. The problem however was what happens after she accomplishes her mission, she would disappear, and Rose would be left to suffer with being a branded criminal who can be recognized with the excuse that she dyed her hair and changed her eyes through surgery or even Alchemy.

Jeanne could not do this to Rose, and so she went with the police without resistance. However, that was as far as she will go, she cannot inform these people about the war. Her only chance is to be released by their own terms, which should be no trouble, even though her Charisma level is considered low, she still has her way to move people by her words.

At least, that is what she thought. Undeniably true, but you would have to be particularly stubborn, incredibly so, to resist her.

"I'm afraid I have business to attend," her aquamarine eyes glistened. _"I have to go, please release me."_

Roy blinked, an unknown thought came to him. Well, he has been keeping this girl up all night and morning, she also hadn't eaten. Maybe he's being too hard on her. She may be suspicious, but actually, she shouldn't really be considered a culprit, or even a suspect. She did save Fullmetal, and that kid always gets himself into trouble. He suppose he can ease off of Jeanne and let her g-

 _Wait. What? No!_ He just agreed with himself not to let this girl go until he get some damn answers! What the hell was wrong with him? It was like he lost his thought process for a moment, taken once he heard the words from this girl. Having a strong urge to slap his own forehead, he instead clenches his fingers and shook his head as a response, also to snap out of whatever trance he was just in, he was probably tired since he didn't sleep at all.

"Sorry, but I can't do that," suddenly wanting to take a breather(unconsciously doing what he could to avoid the spell casted by this girl again), Roy stands up. "Better make yourself comfortable."

He leaves with the door closed behind him.

Jeanne frowns at the failure to convince him again, his will is beyond impressive. It seems that if the girl wishes to leave without trouble, then she will have to eventually relent, but not totally. She will answer in a way that is reasonable yet does not reveal too much, such is her right as Ruler. Even this man for his resistance cannot defy her. She only needs a moment to form her story.

"Are you alright sir?" Riza asked. Roy rubbed his eyes, "Yeah, I just need a cup of coffee." He looks through the window, "Looks like she might be staying in there for a while. Let's hope her fatigue or hunger will get her to talk, if not then maybe a trip to the cell."

"Is that seriously how you're going to do it?"

Roy twitched. "Well, if it isn't Fullmetal?" He looks to the arrived boy who was dressed in his signature attire and his blonde hair in a braid. His brother not too far behind, and very conspicuous.

The colonel glanced at the younger brother. "Sorry sir," Alphonse said, "But brother wouldn't stay no matter what the doctors say."

"I'm fine," Edward waves off his superior's narrowed gaze, "But anyway, if you let her go on without any rest, you're not going to get any answers."

"We don't plan to do anything harsh Fullmetal, and she's hardly responding our questions as it is," Roy explains, looking back at the glass window, "She's a tough one."

"Really?" Yeah, Edward managed to get a hint of that from Jeanne, from when she bravely fought that chimera at Liore, and stood on her own against Lancer, "Maybe I should try talking with her." There's a lot he wants to say to her.

"As interesting as it would be to see that, you really should be on your way to your dorm. You still haven't fully recovered," Roy said before stating seriously, "That's an order."

"No." The colonel twitched in annoyance at the boy's blunt refusal, "I want to know what I almost got killed for, and how that blue guy did the things I saw him do."

Roy raises a brow, "What do you mean by that?"

Edward looked to his feet with a frown, prompting the colonel with curiosity. "…Look, what I'm about to say…you just have to take my word for it."

Roy, Riza, and even Alphonse listened closely. Edward hadn't told his brother yet, he held onto it so that the colonel and lieutenant were also present. When he was done relaying all that he seen Lancer was able to do, the three people around him were in shock.

"Fullmetal...are you sure that happened?"

Edward considered Roy's reasonable disbelief, "I wasn't entirely clear-headed when that guy broke into my room, but I know what I saw before and after he stabbed me." Lancer came and went in a way that was difficult to explain, it was just not normal, not even Alchemy could make such feats. If it could, then he's going to find that man and learn how that appearing and disappearing stunt was done. "I think I have a right to know what's going on."

Not to mention, this girl who was referred to as Rose but claims herself as Jeanne, what did she have to do with all of this? Alphonse shared his brother's confusion, there was a lot about the girl they didn't know other than being surprisingly strong and faithful. Back in Liore when they were about to leave, the brothers saw Jeanne helping the people and asked someone if they knew anything about her.

From what they gathered, the girl known as _Rose_ had lost her family and fiancé, and followed Letoism with the delusion that it would bring back her dead boyfriend, the delusion that everyone in that city had, which makes it all the more surprising that she made such a turnabout against Cornello and called out his lies. Whoever she was, Alphonse can't deny that this girl is withholding something important, but he knows that she isn't a bad person.

She spoke kindly to him when she questioned his body rather than be in fear once she knew the truth, listened in understanding when he told her of the past, and saved his brother twice last night. No matter what, Alphonse doesn't believe, and quite frankly, doesn't see her as anything but a good person. He wishes though that she could tell them what's going on.

"You certainly are persistent, Edward Elric."

A deep voice reached their ears. Roy and Riza gasped, their heels clapped together. Edward and Alphonse turn their attention to the speaker behind them, and were just as surprised.

A middle-aged man approaches with two other officers following behind, his familiar face wrinkled with experience, a black eye-patch over his eye, his black hair has streaks of gray, a smile below his moustache. Broad shoulders that carries command and respect. He is man of political power with an army at his disposal, the leader of this country.

The Fuhrer, King Bradley.

The two officers of the East saluted, "Fuhrer King Bradley!" What was the Fuhrer doing here? Roy never received word of his coming, he would have gotten one days prior. "What can we do for this surprise visit?" The Flame Alchemist questions.

"I'm here on matters that should be kept quiet. But once I arrived, I caught word of the Fullmetal Alchemist's injury and I decided to come by to see how he's doing. It would be a tragedy that we lose one of our youngest and talented Alchemist. I was then led here, and received some details about what happened." He looked to the glass and walked closer, "This girl...is she the one who rescued Mr. Elric?"

"Yes sir," Roy answered, "But we have our suspicions about her. She saved him, but seems to have a connection with the perpetrator."

"Tell me more," King Bradley's voice was gentle, but a soldier could feel the weight under the order. One does not hesitate at the Fuhrer's command.

"She refuses to tell us who the attacker was, with only the name Lancer as the Fullmetal Alchemist has heard this other suspect call him. The other suspect was referred to as Rider, and this girl had addressed herself to Lancer as Ruler." Beside that name, she has two more. Jeanne, Rose, Ruler, either the girl is having an identity crisis or she's been using many alias to hide herself for some reason.

The Fuhrer nodded, observing the girl silently, and looked back at the officers and brothers. "Has she said anything?"

"Her only response was that she could not answer any of our questions, and that she had somewhere to go, but nothing more."

"I see..." The Fuhrer smiles at them, "Well, let's see if being spoken to by the Fuhrer would have her open up."

The brothers and officers were surprised by his suggestion - no, _inclusion_. "That won't be a problem, would it?"

"Uh...No sir," Roy answers.

"Good. Go on ahead and wait at the entrance. I'll send word if I managed to get something from her."

"Yes sir," though they were unsure, they could not disobey the Fuhrer's orders, Edward on the other hand wanted to stay, but with one warning look from Roy, he reluctantly decides against it. He may have got away with that daring stunt at the examination years ago, but if Edward does something that upsets the Fuhrer, Roy would not be able to help him.

Watching the people of Eastern Command leave at his word, King Bradley approaches a contraption planted in the wall, it was a dial that changes the volume of what was heard inside, Bradley turned it all the way down to complete silence, ordering his officers not to let anyone turn it back. He then enters the interrogation room alone.

Jeanne looks up to see yet another person. One look at him and she quickly assessed that he was more than different from the other officers. The signs of him impassively bearing the stress of a high position are clear, and there is a sense about him that would lead many to be greatly impressed, yet also keep themselves at a safe distance.

The man introduced himself, "Good morning, I am King Bradley, the Fuhrer of Amestris."

Jeanne's assumption was accurate, he is not only a few ranks above, but the one who is in charge of this country.

He took the chair across her and sat down, "On behalf of the military and myself, we thank you for your act in protecting the Fullmetal Alchemist, Edward Elric."

Jeanne wanted to ask if he was alright but resisted, quietly choosing to listen the Fuhrer.

"It's within our duty to seek out the man who've done this. Though, to know more about him may help us a great deal," he leans forward, "But I digress, I want you to answer me this."

His gentle features lessoned, his gaze became firm. This would be enough to still the breath of a civilian, and even have a solider gulp with anxiety. Jeanne made no such reactions, but she felt an ominous coming, and her caution increased, bracing for whatever it is that sets her on edge.

She could not have predicted what came.

"Are you the Ruler that's come for the Holy Grail War?"

Jeanne's eyes narrowed.

* * *

"Why did the Fuhrer wanted to talk with her alone?" Edward questions.

Roy gently shook his head, crossing his arms, "I honestly have no idea Fullmetal." Though he has his suspicions. If he's right about the girl being part of the military, then Bradley would be the one to give her permission to talk, but the fact that he had to be the only one to see her and dismissing the people from East Command means this is more than confidential. That no one, not even those who work for the military, must know what will unravel in that room.

"You also think something is strange about this, colonel?" Riza questioned Roy, the Flame Alchemist nods, "Yeah, too bad we can't go back and see for ourselves." If the Fuhrer plans to keep this under wraps, there's really nothing much any of them can do.

"I hope Jeanne is okay..." Alphonse expresses. His older brother agreed, "Yeah, me too. But all I'm wondering is why won't she tell us what's going on?"

"Do you think she's in trouble?" Because if she is, then Alphonse would like to help her, she only needed to ask.

Edward shrugs, "Who knows? She sure doesn't seem like that kind of person," A faithful follower of God partaking in some kind of a illegal fighting ring? Well, there have been absurd things like that happening before, "But we barely know her anyway."

Though, if it's something he and his brother could help her get out of it, he'll consider it since she did save his life - _to which he is going to find out how she healed his fatal wound_ \- and risked herself facing Lancer who has proved himself to be quite a foe. She really is just shockingly strong, Edward couldn't do much against the spearman except make a few lucky hits and even then barely deter the _monster_ , Jeanne must have had a hell of a training.

They merely waited for a while, and then an officer of Bradley arrived. "The Fuhrer wishes to speak with you all. Follow me."

"Did she say anything?" Edward questioned. His only response was "Just follow", rather blunt and rudely at that, Edward quietly called him an ass.

"Now you know how it feels," Roy smirks. Edward looked at him, unimpressed, "As if. I am not that rude."

"That's debatable."

"Oh yeah, that's coming from-"

"Colonel. Ed. Behave yourselves," Riza ordered them, a layer of warning so obvious if her reaching for her pistol is any clue. This quickly stopped the superior's and subordinate's bantering.

They returned. Glancing at the glass, they saw the Fuhrer is still inside the interrogation room. Jeanne's head lowered, her sight on her lap. Edward caught this reaction, he was always a perceptive one even when he was a child, and so he managed to figure out that something definitely happened. She seemed worried.

The officer from Central opens the door, "The Fuhrer wants you all inside. Even the Fullmetal Alchemist's brother."

Alphonse did not expect that. The Fuhrer wants him involved as well? But he is an ordinary citizen, although he helps his brother whenever he was given assignments, Alphonse isn't part of the military. He looked to his brother and found him just as surprised.

Bradley was silent upon the officers of the East and the brothers entering. There was a quick flash of relief from Jeanne when she saw Edward seemingly doing fine before her expression became serious. The door was closed by Bradley's officer.

It was just the six of them. The room spacious enough for all of them to walk around. Roy goes to stand at the other side of the table with Riza in tow. The brothers remained, curious eyes on Jeanne.

"I've turned off the sounds in this room, so no one outside should be able to hear us," Bradley informed, he looked at the girl in front of him, "Jeanne?"

A long quiet moment, she intakes a silent breath and swiftly lets it out. She met the eyes of the people that have entered.

Without a shake to her voice, she responds, "I will tell you all that I know."

Not partially, or a made-up story that will be seen as reasonable without suspicions. She will tell them the truth. For what Bradley has told her prompts the girl to make this decision to which even after agreeing to speak the truth, still brought her great unease. _But she has to. She must._ This concerns their entire country.

"What will be said here must never reach the ears of a civilian, nor will any of you discussed this off-handedly. This is a direct order from your Fuhrer," Bradley pulled the others out of their surprise at Jeanne's willingness to speak, his words catching their attention the most.

Roy was right, this is confidential, but then why now involve people from the East, and a civilian? And what does this girl have to do with this?

All answers will be given shortly.

"It's decided that due to the Fullmetal Alchemist's near demise, the matter concerning his attacker must be relayed to only a few people of the East, to prepare what none of you have trained for," Bradley then addressed Roy, "You may proceed with your questions, Colonel Mustang."

At the Fuhrer's incentive, Roy mentally prepped himself with his questions, and to have more after obtaining whatever answer Jeanne will offer. He moved closer by two feet. Jeanne readied herself.

Roy starts, "Who was the man that attacked the Fullmetal Alchemist?"

"Due to my position, I cannot reveal his true identity to anyone," so says Jeanne, another refusal, yet it was more than her previous answer, "In order to keep his identity anonymous, he is called Lancer for his skill in wielding a spear."

Though she did not offer the response Roy wanted, this was coming off better than before. Let's see...Her position. Keeping Lancer's identity a secret. He'll just have to question her about the first one.

"What do you mean by your position?"

"In a matter of speaking, I am a referee who looks over the prominent battle between warriors, such as the one between Lancer and Rider. I have these _privileges,_ and take action should things do not go as they should. I am called Ruler for that reason."

"And what is so prominent about this fight that Lancer would chase after my subordinate to keep him quiet?"

Jeanne thought over how to respond, "...In order to answer that, I would have to give a lengthy explanation. I ask for all for you to bear with me."

 _It's about time,_ thought Edward. Yet, in all his years of suffering and training, having a great deal of knowledge that he had deemed to be enough for him, he would never have been prepared for what he will soon hear.

"Lancer and Rider. They are mainly referred as Servant, and each have an ally they refer to as Master whose orders they follow. These Masters are competitors fighting in a grand battle that's been occurring every sixty years...The Holy Grail War."

A great secret that was left untouched by the ordinary citizens and even the military by word alone. All will be revealed in this very room.

"The Holy Grail War is an event, a competition. Originally between seven Masters who compete against each other in an all out battle for the Holy Grail; A powerful device that grants the sole victor's wish."

"...Grants wishes?"

Jeanne nods to Roy, "It was created by three families of Magi. Magi are a society of people who studies under Magecraft, and each individual are refer to as a Magus, they are like Alchemists, only the abilities they posses do not only rely on Alchemy. Alchemy is to manipulate the matter, meaning to use the energy around them. A Magus uses the energy within themselves called Prana or Mana."

She then began telling the history to the creation of the Holy Grail War as best as she could, "Many centuries ago, the three families created the Holy Grail to reach the place of all knowledge. They called it _The Root_ , many Alchemists may know this best as _The Truth_."

"What...?" Edward could barely ask Jeanne to repeat, so she reaffirmed this and continues.

"The three families long sought for this plane, and created the Grail as a gateway to reach it. However, there was a dispute amongst them. The Holy Grail was completed, but it could only be accessed by one. So it was decided to compete for it...a battle to the death."

Such a dark fact would put a frown on any , but as Ruler, she neither likes this nor could reject it. It is how it is.

"There have been four wars previously, and Amestris has been the main battleground for all of them."

"Are you joking?" Roy couldn't help but say. To think that this has been happening on his country, yet no one has heard of this. It was hard to believe it.

Jeanne shook her head, "In all four wars, there has not been a confirmed winner, and due to this, the Holy Grail goes into a sort of "sleep state" for sixty years, gathering energy until it is ready to emerge again. When that occurs, it will announce it's coming by choosing new Masters, and officially proclaiming them so by giving these red marks."

"Red Marks?"

Jeanne reaches for her sleeves, and pulls it back. Quiet gasps slips out from those of the East, the sight of strange symbols lined up across her arm. It was not just on her arm though, unseen by these people, she has another set on her other arm, and more on her back.

"These are a sign of one who is a Master. When a Master is chosen, they are granted these marks that makes up to three symbols."

"Then...why do you have more of them?" Alphonse questions in a stunned tone, taking all the information in staggering amazement. This is just...He can't even think of a word that describes this. It's just so surreal.

"I am not a Master..." Jeanne pauses, "I carry these Seals for another purpose...A purpose that which the Masters who have these, also has the right to use."

This was it, Jeanne had been purposefully leaving the one certain fact unmentioned until this moment, the system that makes this Holy Grail War outstanding. Bypassing law and beliefs, breaking the foundation that is this world's memo. The incredible truth of forged miracles like the Holy Grail itself.

"In order for the Holy Grail to activate, there must be casualties. Not of the Masters, but from those that are bonded to those Masters by these Seals. They are the people which you have seen, Edward. Lancer, Rider, these are the casualties the Grail requires in order for it's power to activate, the two men you've met were Heroic Spirits."

Edward crossed his arms as he listens to Jeanne, and stiffened when she said something extremely odd, "Heroic Spirits?"

"Yes. These Heroic Spirits are used as powerful weapons for the Masters. Super-humans with incredible abilities," and with such bluntness that was as quick as it was to rip off a Band-Aid, she reveals without hesitation, "They are reincarnated warriors."

It was like lightning struck the four people of the East.

"What?!" Roy and Edward synchronized.

"Reincarnated...Warriors...as in back from the dead?" Alphonse was at a lost, "But...but..."

"That's impossible," Edward stated it as if it was the - no, he _knows_ it's the truth.

She must be lying, she HAS to be.

"How?" Riza asked, gathering enough bearings compare to the rest - excusing the Fuhrer who continues to calmly listen, not at all reacting to Jeanne's explanation.

But perhaps she is calmer than her superior and the brothers because she is not an Alchemist. Although this is definitely incredibly shocking, it is not as earthshattering to her as it is to those who have studied under the science of Alchemy, acknowledges the unspoken absolute truth once one becomes an Alchemist, and suffers the severe consequences if this truth is challenged.

The undeniable fact: _People don't come back from the dead._

And yet this girl has said otherwise. There was no lunacy in her eyes, but that only makes her appear all the more insane.

"A Master will put together a ritual," like that of a transmutation circle she says, but it is different she promises, "One would get a relic if they wish for a specific Hero. But it can still be possible without one, by that, the Grail will then choose a Servant best fitting for-"

A hand slams against the table, too loud to have been done from flesh to surface.

All eyes were on the Fullmetal Alchemist.

"Stop kidding around," he said coolly, "What you're describing is a successful Human Transmutation, and you're telling me that these guys, these Masters, were able to accomplish what Alchemy couldn't do since it's own discovery?!"

"Fullmetal," Roy spoke to the boy, he was just as dumbfounded, but he had to tell his subordinate to calm down. He sees it, the young State Alchemist wasn't in disbelief, he was enraged.

Rightfully so. Back then, when Edward was just a small child, he was not only naive, he was a fool, even for a little kid who was without supervision, he truly believed that he and Alphonse could do what was explicitly said to be impossible. They held on to the illusion that they're mother would return smiling and granting them a hug. They paid the price for this nonsense.

That's all it was, nonsense. Bringing the deceased back to life is just a disproven theory. No science or ingredients could make this possible, nothing could make this a reality, and if this girl only think it does out of her own faith then she seriously needs help.

To an Alchemist, it's understood, _It can't be done!_

To this girl, she says, _It can_.

Or at least, that's what Edward thought.

"...I understand your doubt."

Doubt? It was more of _I straight up don't believe you._

"Allow me to clarify. Though the Summoning of a Servant can be mistaken as Human Transmutation, it's a fact that it's not." Jeanne closed her eyes, "It is true that man cannot bring back the dead, not by science, and not even by Magecraft. The Holy Grail itself is incapable of summoning a True Heroic Spirit, the Real Soul of the person who've passed on. It can only gather information of the person, data, memories from the world, and with it, forms a copy of that person. Therefore, this is not what can be called a _True Reincarnation_."

Jeanne herself can confirm this, she feels she is the girl who took up the flag, she has memories of her life up to her demise, she recalls having loved her family and had dreams and fears, but…

She knows she is not the real Jeanne D'Arc. That is the nature of a Servant. It is because of this that some Servants will see and accept themselves as weapons rather than people to their Masters, and that even the Masters will not treat them with kindness or as equals, but as mere familiars, tools that are destined to be used and may eventually be discarded, a proclaimed necessary tactic by the average Magus who is raised to be cold and calculating, to be inhumane.

If Jeanne were to witness a cruel suicide attack despite the Servant's personal wish against it, she could do nothing to punish the Master for as long as it is within the rules regulations, it is allowed. Even for a Ruler with many privileges, Jeanne would be the only one that has made a violation should she actively try to do something that she sees it as wrong, even though by the Holy Grail War's standard, it is acceptable.

Even if it were to tear her heart apart, Jeanne will not go against her role as Servant Ruler. For this is a duty trusted to her, and she could not betray this trust. That is who she is.

"To put it in another way, scientifically speaking, the body is forged, and the preserved brain that belonged to a specific person is implanted. But the actual soul cannot be retrieved."

Edward's rage simmered down. A copy of a person she says, meaning if all the information of that person is gathered, and if it were to gain a form...Edward would have to understand how this could even be done, but theoretically, if the true soul couldn't be brought back, but a rendition of it just as Jeanne explains in her last statement, then could it actually be...possible?

No. It couldn't be. There were too many elements that didn't fit together for the Alchemist. Edward turns away, deeply contemplating with his gloved hand over his mouth and looks to the floor without a target, half-hearing his concerned brother. Roy resumes questioning. A headache was building up, but he preserves.

"Why do these Servants have to be killed?"

"The Servants are connected to _The Root_ , they're bodies are made up of great amount of pure energy, Prana," disbelief looks shot in her way, "Should all six Servants die, their energy will be drained by the Holy Grail and the device should appear...At least, that's how it's supposed to be."

"What do you mean by that?"

Controlled yet unnerved, Jeanne responds, "Something has forcibly altered the Servant System - it is a mechanic which the Holy Grail can control. At this point, I don't know what could have happened to it, all I know is that there are more than seven Servants summoned for this war."

"How many?"

Jeanne stared ahead, an invisible foe who is the source of her discomfort before her eyes, "Too many. As of now, I carry two seals of each belonging to over twenty Servants and growing."

"How powerful are they?"

"Should all the Servants come together and decide to have an all-out battle, I do not exaggerate when I say that this whole country will be destroyed."

The stomachs of the officers and the brothers(if Alphonse had one)felt very heavy like a boulder suddenly appeared inside.

"At best, half of the land may be spared, but that's only if the Servants from the Second Dimension stops now. Unfortunately, this is continuing even now-"

"Hold up. Second Dimension?" Not afterlife? Well, these claimed spirits were copies, but what did she mean by Second Dimension? He thought he understood that this Grail - _whatever the hell it is_ \- creates these spirits - _however the hell that's done_.

Jeanne blinked, "Ah…yes, that…" she grasps her hands together, a small sign of her nerves wavering, she shifted in her seat, "That…will not be hard to explain, but will be difficult to hear."

They wait for her to elaborate.

"You see…these Heroic Spirits are from a different _Root_ as oppose to this world's...They are from another dimension. Another planet."

Silence.

"…I know, it is very hard to accept," Jeanne grimaced, even she found this to be so incredibly unbelievable.

"No, I think I got it."

Jeanne looked at Edward in surprised. His brother, superiors, and even the Fuhrer averts their attention towards him.

The young State Alchemist points to her, "You're crazy."

The door swung open and the disgruntled Edward marches out. The officer of Central to the right had the misfortune to suffer the door slamming against him and he bellowed in pain.

"E-Ed!" Alphonse quickly chases after him, with his large substitute body, he pushed the door to leave, and unintentionally it slams against the poor Central officer again. The second officer from Central was so startled at the abrupt events, and simply watched it all happen.

Jeanne witnessed his sudden departure speechlessly.

"Dammit Fullmetal…" Roy grasps his forehead, "Well…I can't blame him. What you just said right now is beyond farfetched." He should have called in for a lie-detector, well, that really would make no difference, clearly there HAS to be something wrong with this girl.

"Even so, I wouldn't disregard everything else she has said," The Fuhrer announced in a low tone. Getting up to shut the door. After a click, he added, "There may be some truth to her words."

"With all do respect, Fuhrer Bradley," The Flame Alchemist said, "How can we actually take this seriously? And if this really is confidential, why tell us along with a civilian?"

"The Fullmetal Alchemist came into contact with these Servants. From what I heard, the man name Lancer was intent to silence him upon seeing the battle, and it is most likely that he would do it again. It would be best to inform Mr. Elric along with his superiors of what I know concerning this Servant, and considering that his brother is always with him, he would have to be told of this as well. As for how I could believe any of this…" The Fuhrer takes a brief moment, leaning back into his seat slightly, "Have any of you heard of the _False Ice Trail Incident_?"

…The atmosphere grew heavy with grim silence. Roy and Riza deeply frowned, having read that case in a file and seen the pictures, voicing their agreements the ghastliness it was. It was rarely talked about because of how disturbing it was. They have seen their fair share of horrors in the Ishvalan War, but this case is up there as the most gruesome they have ever encountered, and they weren't even the ones who respond to it.

Several years ago, when the ex-soldier Isaac the Freezing Alchemist gained the military's attention for his revolt, putting together a rebellion and organizing destructive activities, there was a lead to his whereabouts near Central City at a secluded village. Witnesses claimed that an Alchemist performing Ice Alchemy resign there, deep in the woods.

"We expected Isaac to have many men at his hideout," the Fuhrer tells the story, "Fifty soldiers were dispatched to that village, fifteen of them were State Alchemists. After their arrival, there had been no response from the team for half a day. It was then that the villagers discovered a soldier crawling out of the woods. Out of the fifty men that was sent and had entered the woods, the one who dragged himself out of there was the only survivor."

 _It must have been a hell of a battle_ , Roy thought.

"We came to assume that it had been an ambush, and so sent an army. However, the hideout was never found, what we did discover were the remaining forty-nine soldiers…" He stopped to briefly catch his breath, and continued.

"They were all killed, and were left held up by hundreds of stakes through their bodies."

The grisly images rose in their minds. It was far worse had they been there themselves. The smell of death and the sight of the dead soldiers frozen, terrified and pained looks, it was enough for dozens upon dozens of soldiers and investigators to lose their lunch.

Jeanne frowns deeply, yes, this is an act awfully similar to _that one man_ in her world's history.

"We later found out that the lead itself had been misleading, the appearance of the Alchemist did not match Isaac," thus, where the name _False Ice Trail_ came to be, "After that confirmation, we were left puzzled at who could have done this. Understandably, it brought us great concern. The survivor was questioned, but he could only mutter this repeatedly…"

 _He is not human_.

"It seemed unlikely, but his answer indicates that the forty-nine soldiers were killed by this one man."

The Eastern officers were stunned. This was not in the file they read. One man killing all those soldiers? Surely this survivor was under a lot of stress and had hallucinated, or whatever happened traumatized him so much he lost his sense of reality.

"We try to press for further elaboration, but the survivor went into shock, and died soon after. We ended up having to scrape any information that we could find, and it was then that we were approached by a man of the Church."

With a look, he cues Jeanne to speak.

"…The Church also has a part in the Holy Grail War. Their role is to ensure the war is within regulations, however, if there are complications which even they cannot handle, then that is when the Holy Grail will sent a mediator. Hence, my purpose here."

"But my determination and refusal to let this case go led the Church no other choice but to intervene," said the Fuhrer, "and through them, it is revealed to me that this man who managed to single-handedly deal with fifty soldiers and State Alchemists, is what you call a Servant."

Jeanne frowns, and spoke to Bradley, "But were you really spoken to by a man of the Church?"

If the Church was truly in trouble, why not involve the Mage Association of this world? It is indubitable that the _False Ice Trail Incident_ was a horrible matter, but no amount of men, whether they are trained for war or have an astute talent in Alchemy, could ever hope to face against a Servant. This inclusion of the Fuhrer himself was a shock on it's own, none of the Churches she went to had informed her of this.

And the star of her bafflement, this rogue Servant was summoned years prior the Holy Grail's next coming. It was far too early, or was it possible...That this Servant is a survivor of the last Holy Grail War?

Ten years since the Fourth Holy Grail War, and already the Fifth is commencing. In between those ten years, a rogue Servant left corpses of Amestrian soldiers, a Servant that should have been impossible to summon at the time unless he really was a Servant from the war before, or perhaps the Servant system itself has spiraled out of control, immaturely choosing random Masters of not only Magus, Alchemist, but even _civilians_ , and having them subsequently bring forth Servants in ways that were not planned with what she gathered from each Master she has met - somehow unintentionally summoning the heroes. Then a man of the Church came before the Fuhrer and revealed all that was to be kept in the dark, thus how the leader of Amestris was able to know just as much as Jeanne, if not more.

It was one bewilderment after another.

"The military will not stand for what happened to those fifty men. Soldiers are frequently sent to the battlefield, so it is unavoidable that there would be lives lost, but the way that those men were displayed..."

Bradley's fist trembled, contempt burns within his very soul, "It was not only a sight that disgusted me, it was as if we were being mocked. Whether it was to be some kind of a warning, or it was to amuse the man responsible, perhaps those soldiers were hung up as trophies. Personally, I don't give a damn what it was supposed to be. If he was trying to get me angry, he succeeded, and now all I look forward is to know where he is, and handle his execution myself."

Behind the neutral expression of the Eastern officers, they were amazed and internally shaken by the emotion of the Fuhrer. Even Jeanne for her unwavering heart could not remain impassive to the obvious fury from Bradley. The vehement behind his cool stature sends a shiver to her spine.

Calming down, Bradley continues, "The main culprit of that incident remains unknown to this day. In order to refrain from tipping off anyone who may have relations to this Servant, we have to keep our alliance quiet even from most of the other Churches, but word has been sent to the Mage Association, the military need only to request more of these Magus as allies. The Master of this rogue Servant may choose to leave the country, but unless he is willing to give up on this Holy Grail, there's still a chance for them to be eventually found."

So has the Fuhrer of Amestris assured, and yet, not a bit did Jeanne feel any ease.

"This is the purpose of my arrival, having been confirmed by the Overseer of Central City, I personally decided to travel here and look for you, and request for you to help us in this matter."

And thus, comes the true source of the girl's troubled heart.

"Jeanne, as you are the Ruler Servant of the Fifth Holy Grail War, I ask that you will offer your power in service for the military. The entire country is at stake, and your Seals commands all the Servants that are present on Amestris, they will help a great deal to keep this war from escalating into a complete disaster. Will you help us?"

He waits for her answer.

* * *

The Elric brothers sat among the steps outside East Command, shielded by the extension of the building from the rain. The young State Alchemist needed some fresh air after having to deal with whatever just happened in there. No words exchanged between them for a long while, but together they grasped a total agreement of this circumstance.

It was absolutely absurd.

Yet the line is drawn upon Alphonse's own feelings about this. Having repeated everything Jeanne had said in his mind, it was too unpleasantly implausible, yet could he really deny it so? When the girl herself spoke as if it was nothing but the truth? With how unhesitant she was throughout her story until reaching the climax, Alphonse was having an incredibly difficult time not to believe it, but he couldn't accept it either.

He only considered it.

"…Can it really be true?" Alphonse's tone is weary, looking to his brother.

"Of course it can't," Edward emits a sharp tone, not to the youngest, but to the girl he had called insane, "…Not that last part anyway."

"Then this whole thing about a war…"

"…I really don't know. That guy I fought, he had powers I've never seen before. He was stronger than anybody we've faced…I think he could even take on Teacher."

"Then maybe we shouldn't ignore everything she said," Alphonse suggested, "The Fuhrer was there and he didn't say anything, like…"

He believes Jeanne. Or maybe, he has his own sources that tells him to expect this from Jeanne. Was this why he wanted a talk with her alone first? Was it to confirm something? He strictly told them not to mention this to anyone, so could it be that…he knew about this war before meeting Jeanne? Then…

This is serious.

"But a whole other world? Not like some kind of after life which would have made sense if she said that, but another planet! How does she expect us to believe that?"

"Well, she did say it was hard to accept. If she really was convinced in everything she says, she probably wouldn't have sounded so…" not nervous, not in disbelief. Understandably amazed and accepting of anyone's doubts, but has said it anyway.

"That just means she's a bad liar," so decided the Fullmetal Alchemist, "…But you're right. We can't disregard everything…at least, maybe we shouldn't take what Jeanne said literally."

"You mean, like it's some kind of code?"

Edward wanted to say yes, it has to have been some kind of code, but his heart wasn't into it. He couldn't believe everything that Jeanne had told him, perhaps he could to some extent, but the way it was told seemed like such an exaggeration. How could no one have known of a war like this happening in their country - four times, and now a fifth is happening? If it was so grand, some piece of information about it should have been unraveled somewhere no matter how damn good the people partaking in this _clearly sick ritual_ hides the war. (Sick as in you would have to be a nutcase to kill others, all for a wish which Edward has serious doubts such a thing could be legitimate.)

Reincarnated warriors though not genuine, would be the breaking-point for Alchemists in their pursuit of coming close to bringing back the dead, so how could this incredible thing be unheard of? Why, if it was true, was it known to him just a few minutes ago by a girl whom he just met at Liore and not by others long ago?

"…I don't know," so confessed the young State Alchemist. He sighed, golden eyes aimed at the sky, "There's a lot of things I don't know," he had thought he knew everything, how undeniably arrogant, "A war for a wish. Super-human warriors, not reincarnated, but a copy of themselves…" It was somewhat reasonable, but even then, the body has to have a soul, if that Lancer really was a copy of a person that died long ago, where could he have gotten a soul? Does this Servant even have one? "Then there's something about Magi, do you remember hearing a word like that?"

"Not really. But I've read novels that had a name like that, they're people who-"

"Use magic." Edward snorted, "Yeah, there's no way that most of the things she said is true, she's just having a hard time waking up whatever fantasy she's in. Hopefully when I talk to her, she'll give us a straight answer."

An answer that he can accept.

A vehicle pulled up in front of the entrance, Edward hardly gave it any notice as he was in deep contemplation, but at the driver's exiting the car, the Elric brothers thoughts went astray when they heard the shut of the door, and looked at the familiar face hurriedly walking up the steps.

A dark hair man with stubbles reaching across the jawline. Dark framed glasses that mildly reflects the light of day. His outfit is a military uniform, but although he is a soldier, his current occupation is as an Investigator at Central City. He looked up when the brothers stood up, and though surprised, he smiles at them.

"Lieutenant Colonel!" The brothers called the man.

Maes Hughes greeted with a wave, "If it isn't the Elric brothers? You know, you really shouldn't be out in a weather like this. You could catch a cold," his smile dimmed considerably, "I love to catch up, but I have an urgent report to give to Roy."

"He's at the interrogation room with the lieutenant, and King Bradley." Edward noted the startled look on Hughes. The Fuhrer really did kept his visit a low-profile.

"Really? Well, I can't dawdle even with the Fuhrer here."

"Why? What's wrong?" Alphonse asked. As Hughes enters the building, the brothers followed.

"Shou Tucker was murdered."

The boys nearly tripped, "What?!"

"I came to East City to take him and his daughter to Central, but by the time I arrived at the Transfer station, the whole place was hectic. Then I saw the body..." Hughes debated if he should go into detail, it's not something one would tell to children. But regardless, the brothers must absolutely know, because this was not some random attack. What happened to Tucker also concerns Edward and Roy.

"Witnesses claimed of a male with dark skin, white hair, and a scar on his face having entered and leave the scene. I've sent word to Eastern Command, but it sounds like you guys had your hands full with something else, so I came by to deliver the message myself."

Shou Tucker. Murdered. Although the news was a complete shock, Edward could care less about that devil of a man. His concern was Nina. The little girl was taken along with her father. If Tucker was killed, then...

"What about Nina?" Edward presses, heavy fear in his tone. The brothers waited in great anticipation and increasing worry at Hughes too long of a silence. The man was contemplating, these boys from what he gathered through Roy's report, cared a great deal for this little girl. In that case, he has an idea how they're going to react when he reveals to them.

"...She's missing. It's possible that when Tucker was murdered, Nina escaped. As of now there's a full blown search happening."

 _Nina is missing...?_ Edward let this info come to him slowly. Although there was relief at hearing that statement, the fact of the little girl being out there somewhere in the rain, lost and afraid, drove the brothers with great agitation.

"We have to find her!" They synchronized.

"And we will. As for you two," Hughes stopped, and sharply turn to face them. His gaze startled the boys, "You need to stay here. The culprit matches the description of a Serial Killer that's been after State Alchemists. We know nothing of him, and so dubbed him for his appearance; Scar. Ed, you and Roy have to be on high alert, Scar may have heard of you guys and will come after you."

"You expect me to stay here while Nina is out there?!" The Fullmetal Alchemist yelled, capturing the attention from those nearby.

"Yes, because Scar is a dangerous man. He killed State Alchemists that were also veterans. You _have_ to stay here." Hughes emphasized with such deepness one wouldn't expect it from the normally happy family man. "I'm going to see Roy. Keep your head low, and don't wander off on your own. Scar is not someone you want to cross with, he's a skilled fighter, and he will try to kill you."

...Viewing the lowered head and relented look on Edward, Hughes felt confident in being able to get through the young State Alchemist. "It'll be alright," his smile returns, "We'll find Nina, and do whatever we can to help her."

 _Can anyone actually help her though?_ Edward didn't say his thoughts. He let Hughes leave to personally send the message to Roy.

"...Ed. I don't think I can wait," Alphonse expresses his unrestful spirit.

Not to his surprise, his older brother smiled at him, a knowing smile, "Me neither."

Once the Lieutenant Colonel left completely, the brothers raced out of Eastern Command and down the sidewalk, bearing through the cold wet touch of the weather falling consistently. They have to find Nina, she's their friend, they will find her! Even with this serial killer on the loose, the Elric brothers will not be intimidated so easily. Lieutenant Colonel Hughes should have captured this obvious fact of the Fullmetal Alchemist, he is an incredible investigator, it seemed unlikely that Hughes would missed this.

But it was due to the expression he saw on Edward that he misinterpreted the young State Alchemist's actual thoughts. What Hughes thought to be relenting, was actually a look towards a wound that was received last night. Since Hughes had no knowledge of what had happened to Edward, he had reasonably yet incorrectly assumed due to not having enough information. A rarity, but it happens.

The true thoughts of the State Alchemist were Hughes warning of this Serial State Alchemist Killer. _He will try to kill you._

 _As if so many other people haven't already_ , thought the Fullmetal Alchemist, his mind wanders to the wound still fresh over his heart.

"Let's start at her house!" Edward said as he ran.

Alphonse agreed with Edward, "It shouldn't be too hard to look for her," You would have to be blind to not notice a talking dog with long brown hair, but for those who have eyes, it's safer to speculate that people would be terrified of her, "I hope we'll find her before anyone else does!"

He fears that if some citizen discovered her, they'll be so afraid they might hurt Nina, and if the military finds her, since Nina isn't considered a human anymore, they'll treat her like a wild animal. It's such a cruel thing to do to a little girl. They have to find her first at any cost!

"We will!" Edward proclaims, they did a sharp turn around the block. The rainwater splashed at their momentary skid.

They stopped short when they spot a figure in the distant.

In the cold morning, a man walks solely across the empty road. His skin dark, his short hair damp yet white as a rainless cloud. His coat a sand color, flowing in the breeze. Dark glasses that hides his eyes well, and lastly yet the most noticeable feature; An X shape scar on his forehead, it's edge reaching to his cheekbones.

He was walking towards the brothers, the vibe from the silent man a dangerous, threatening ooze. The brothers startled reaction at the sight of him quickly averts to raising their defense. _His appearance..._

The stranger's fist gently sway by his side, and clenched as if to grapple the skull of the air. His fingers were stained in blood.

The man spoke in a voice laced with years of rage, "Are you the Fullmetal Alchemist?"

* * *

 **In the midst of requesting an alliance with Jeanne for the military, the Fullmetal Alchemist is targeted once again.**


	4. Targeted Figures

Chapter 4: Targeted Figures

The room pervades with silence. King Bradley waits for an answer. The Eastern Soldiers quietly listens, curious to hear Jeanne's response, and recovering from their amazement at the information enlighten by the girl, confirmed to be true by their Fuhrer.

To think that a war of this scale has been happening in their own country, and they were utterly unaware of it. The discovery of these groups called Magi - a term they had never heard before. Then there are these dangerous beings called Heroic Spirits, Servants. Weapons of Magi, all to settle a dispute in claiming a wish-making device. Is this device really as it is implicated? Could this miraculous object surpass Alchemy, and even Equivalent Exchange?

To the soldiers, it's worrisome on its own that these 'reincarnated warriors' are the reasons for the death of those soldiers, with recent events dictating one nearly taking the life of their young prodigy, but this 'wish' is just as problematic to hear. Whatever ambition the sole winner will achieve by obtaining this Grail, is it capable to bring great harm to this country, more so, than these Servants?

Something must be done about this.

With everything practically stilled, Jeanne eyes the older man, reassessing everything the Leader of Amestris has informed. Prior to involving the people of East City, Bradley had relayed her the story of the _False Ice Trail Incident_ , and then added that this was not the only rogue Servant to have been uncovered.

Confirmed by their new ally, there were two other attacks centering the death of innocent lives in secluded villages. The Church revealed that all these attacks were indeed done by Servants. At this revelation, it's clear just how immensely distressing the situation is.

Rogue Servants indiscriminately attacking bystanders, and in addition, the startling number of Servants and new ones yet to come, with some Masters so unqualified to be a Magus that surely they would use some frowned upon means in order to sustain their Servant. Jeanne had a few instances of meeting civilians who are Masters, and guided them to their local Church that are aware of the war, so to have them relent their Servants as they are unfit to support the Heroes for long.

Help would be the most appreciable, and necessary course of action, one which the Church has done with the Amestris military who has shown their unrelenting search for answers in response to the loss of the fifty soldiers. With the Fuhrer having every connection manageable across the country, Jeanne understood the reasoning behind the alliance. But it was nonetheless strange.

Furthermore, the Fuhrer's own insistence to have her join for her privilege, the connection to the many Servants on Amestris by two Command Seals for each Hero, is what sets her on edge. If Jeanne could help, she would be glad to, but it was the unorthodoxy of this exchange.

Instead of someone whom she can expect to address about this, it was an outsider so to speak. He is the leader of this country, but if he had come to see Jeanne, why not bring someone who is in a rightful position to know about the Grail War? Like a Magus or a group of them he exclaims to have offered assistance, or even better, the one who had first given him this much information?

Something is not right, more so about the man in front of her. Jeanne is not at all ease with being in the same room as he. There was something off, no matter the friendly disposition he has put up, and she cannot ignore this feeling no matter how much she would try to force rationalization. Or rather, there was some sense to her suspicions.

For a man who has every info he can gather as the Fuhrer, he has every right to tell her what he _wants_ her to hear, as well could he withhold anything else from her. With this little doubt in her, Jeanne decides to go with her heart.

He's not telling her everything.

 _I can't trust him._

She must confirm his story by someone whom she believes she could indeed trust.

"…I must speak with the Overseer of your city first."

Bradley nods, "Of course. We will arrange a transportation that will suite your needs." He then spoke to the Eastern Soldiers, "I once again have to enforce that the both of you will keep this quiet. It's important that only a few of you soldiers are in the know should you come across these beings. But never on any account are you to speak of this with civilians around."

He explains, "I've been told that to summon these Servants, you would not even need to have these Seals come first, simply performing the summoning may do. We can't have anyone else know this."

Jeanne confirms, "This is correct. If it were a normal Holy Grail War, there would be no use worrying over summoning any more Heroes if all seven slots of the seven classes are taken," Herself being an exception, "However, with this anomaly, this may actually be possible, regardless how many are already summoned."

The Eastern Soldiers steadily nods, and agreed to keep this information to a minimal in public, but if Roy were to tell this to someone, it would in fact be his team first. He can already imagine their looks of disbelief.

"I wish to know one more thing," Jeanne inquires, "How do you plan to combat against these Rogue Servants?"

"The Church that has requested the presents of these Magi will have their own Servants, and we the military will provide forces to assist them," the Fuhrer said, "If you wish to speak with one of them. I can formulate a meeting-"

The door was abruptly opened, shouts of the Central City guards opposes the intruding man.

"Fuhrer Bradley!" Maes Hughes voices, "Please forgive my interruption, but I have an urgent message concerning the serial State Alchemist Killer; Scar."

His abrupt entrance, as well his announcement, startled the Eastern Soldiers. Bradley quietly listens to the man.

"He has killed the Sewing Alchemist Shou Tucker at East City Transfer Center, and the whereabouts of his daughter; Nina Tucker, is currently unknown."

A Serial State Alchemist Killer? Jeane has heard of rumors during her travels about a man with the description of a scar on his face, it brought no actual problem to her that she couldn't call it a hindrance in her journey, but it was still rather troubling to hear. To think that there would be someone whose occupation is akin to a Magus Killer roaming around and-

Killing State Alchemists.

She shot up from her seat, "Have you met two boys on your way here?" She questions, urgency in her tone.

Hughes blinked, wondering if this girl knew the Elric brothers. "I did meet with the Fullmetal Alchemist and his brother-"

Then she felt it, it was incredibly faint, perhaps no one in this room noticed. But for a Servant like her, she could not miss it with a skill that has her to be hypersensitive. A fight have commenced from afar, between users of Magecraft-like-but-not-quite powers. Wordlessly, she dashed out of the room and ran down the hall.

Taken aback by her agility that he didn't know humans could have, he looked to the Eastern soldiers with a question in mind, but then Roy followed after her with Riza in tow. They had the same thoughts as Jeanne once Hughes relayed the news.

Bradley calmly stood up, "I want the Fullmetal Alchemist and his brother found, and every soldier out in search of Scar," his order was stern, and will not appreciate any failure or hesitation. His guards, including Hughes, saluted in absolute compliance. "Yes Sir!"

They leave to follow through their orders. Hughes regrouped with his old time friend and Riza at the lobby, catching the Flame Alchemist's cursing after he received information about the Elric brothers from the people near the entrance. Roy growls, "I swear Fullmetal, you better not do anything stupid after just coming out of the hospital."

Hearing a fact he never knew before, Hughes stumbled, "What?! Ed was…What happened?"

Riza explains, "Last night, Edward was on a stroll when he witnessed a fight between two men. One of them chased after him and nearly pierced his heart."

Edward was attacked? His heart nearly pierced? Such news shocked the man, but no more than it did the horrifying realization. The look Maes thought he read on Edward. It wasn't relent, Ed was-!

 _Dammit! I should have noticed that!_ How could he have missed something so obvious? Even with lacking information, he should have easily concluded that there was more hiding under the layer of the Fullmetal Alchemist.

While evaluating a plan between Roy and Riza, Hughes presses for the three of them to take his car. Bearing through the rain until reaching the vehicle, the Investigator then shamefully admits his misread of Edward Elric and that should he have realized, he would have done something to prevent the boys from going anywhere.

Sitting in the passenger seat, Roy shook his head, "You just got here. You couldn't have known what happened to Fullmetal."

"I should have kept quiet about Nina though," Hughes said. This was the main cause of the boys spiked passion. He should have known the Elric brothers wouldn't actually sit still for anything, not even with a serial killer out there. If something were to happen to those brothers, he's going to carry an incredible weight of guilt and self-resentment.

"They would have pushed, and would have never let you go. Stop blaming yourself, Hughes. You warned them about Scar and they chose not to listen. If you really want to do something about it though, let's find those two before Scar does," Roy slips on his gloves.

Riza loaded her pistol, "And reprimand them severely," she added, which Roy agreed utmost.

Hughes nodded, determined to look for the brothers, and after his relief at their safety, he will scold them until their ears bleed. "Major Armstrong is already out with other soldiers looking for Scar, so we'll come across him." He perks in remembrance, "By the way, who was that girl?" He refers about Jeanne.

Roy pauses, "…Someone who saved Fullmetal's life." Since the girl got a head start, he can only hope that she will do it again if the Elric brothers had the misfortune of crossing paths with Scar.

* * *

Edward transmutes yet another range of concrete to rise and collide with the chaser, but the killer simply grasp it and uses his own version of Alchemy to completely destroy it. Alphonse attempted to assist his own brother, but even his own transmutation attacks were destroyed easily. Thus, the brothers agreed to run away, and the Serial State Alchemist Killer chases after.

"What's this guy's problem?!" Edward yelled as they took the stairs leading towards another section of the city. Edward knows he must have made a lot of enemies, but he has not once met the man in pursuit. He knew who the man was, or at least, he knew the moment he saw the scar, matching perfectly from Hughes' description. But even so, why is this man trying so hard to kill State Alchemists like him?

As they ran down the steps, Scar hops over the railings and landed before the brothers could reach the end. The killer slams his palm at the bottom steps, from a violent Alchemical reaction, the stairs the brothers were on ruptures. Alphonse reacted quickly and caught his brother, taking the impact of their descent with no pain and sparing Edward from any damage. Once Alphonse stood back up, he released his brother and together, they resume.

Civilians watched in startled confusion as the Elric brothers ran down the road. Earlier, the brothers would have backtrack to Eastern Command, but Scar had caught them off-guard and from battling to stay alive, dodging that man's grip bent on crushing or blasting their heads apart, they had distanced themselves from the place of needed reinforcements, and the brothers were left to fend for themselves.

Even though the both of them excels when they are together, not even the pair stood a chance against the man driven with immense hatred, greater experience, and level of Deconstruction surpassing the two.

Edward stops when he sees a path between two buildings, the best way to take if they wish to turn back around for Eastern Command. The brothers took their chance.

Another alchemical reaction of deconstruction trails by them quickly, then an explosion. Their way is soon buried with rubbles and pieces of the building. They avoided being crushed and hurried to retreat, but found Scar blocking their only way out. The Elric brothers were trapped.

"Looks like we got no choice but to fight," Edward grabs a piece of metal from the rubble and transmuted a curved knife. Alphonse steps into a stance, ready to fight.

"Brave ones, aren't you?" Scar comments.

The brothers charged. Edward doesn't see a Transmutation circle on Scar, so he reasons that it must be hiding under the sleeve. Alphonse aims to assist his brother, having quickly read Edward's plan of attack, and looks to distract Scar.

"But too slow."

Scar smoothly moved pass them, too agile for them to avoid. The killer felt the side of the armored Alchemist. Alchemical reactions sparks beneath his palm, and a whole chunk of Alphonse's side is blown apart.

"Al!" Edward cried out.

Alphonse gasped, although he felt no pain without his real body, the loss of support for his armor swipes away his balance, and he fell to the ground.

"It's empty?" Scar glanced within the armor that was actually hollow to his surprise. A yell of anger averts his attention, he quickly caught the arm of Edward before the blade could reach him. Scar slams his hand against the limb, expecting it to be destroyed in a bloody mess, but there was no affect other than tearing apart the red fabric of the young Alchemist's sleeve and the weapon destroyed. Edward stumbles as he backs away.

Confused as to why his attack didn't work as it should, Scar observes Edward who has regain his balance on the street. Edward removed his red coat and soggy white glove, and transmutes a blade to form over the wrist of his automail.

"Now I see," the State Alchemist Killer eyes the mechanical limb, "An automail. That's why my attack didn't work." If he cannot comprehend the type of material he makes contact with, then he cannot destroy it. Believing that it was flesh, Scar barely did any damage to the young Alchemist.

But now that he knows the arm is actually metal, having a certain guess of what type it is, Scar is confident he can destroy it now. He demonstrates this thought process by quickly closing the distance between him and Edward. Shocked and not enough chance to react in time, Edward's automail is grabbed, he could not escape once Scar grasps his shoulder - the connection between the mechanical limb to his flesh, and destroyed it. Edward falls, his right arm in broken pieces.

He is now powerless against Scar. Without his right arm, he could not perform Alchemy in an instant.

"Ed!" Alphonse struggles for his broken shell of a body to move, to go and save his brother. But he could barely inch any closer. "Ed! Run away! Please!"

"There's no running from Divine Judgment," Scar remains his sight on Edward. "Say your prayers boy, I will give you only this chance to make amends to God."

Edward stared at the rubble and pieces of his automail. He is without any way to defend himself, his power could not be used. He was in the mercy of the killer who will momentarily end his life.

Yet, the boy smirked. As if to spite the man, or to himself, "There isn't a God I like to pray to." He glares defiantly, "And don't think I'm giving up just cause you took my right arm."

"Do you think you have any chance?" Scar questions, frowning deeper than before.

"I'll be honest, it doesn't seem like it," Edward stands back up, "But I've been fairly lucky recently. So why not give it a shot?" He already had someone try to end his life, he refuses to let anyone else do a better job. After last night's event, he decided he doesn't plan on dying any time soon, it was too much of a pain - irritatingly so.

It seems like absolute senseless stubbornness, but Edward merely cannot afford to die. There is a little girl out here who needed him. If circumstances were different, if the aftermath of Nina's tragedy was another, then he would not have this amount of will to go against the odds in fighting this clearly stronger enemy. He would have let himself be killed. But right now, he will kick and bite if he has to, he will do whatever it takes so that he would go and find Nina.

"You're Scar, right? The guy whose been killing State Alchemists?" Edward questions, "You go after normal Alchemists like my brother too?"

"You mean the one without a body inside?" Scar glanced at the younger brother before reverting his attention, "If he gets in my way, I will eliminate him. But I am here only for you."

Edward found some relief in that. If he does get killed, Alphonse will at least be safe. "You promise?"

"You have my word," Scar truthfully states.

"Brother!" Alphonse read the meaning behind his brother's question, and consistently begged Edward to leave him, to escape while he can. But his words did not move Edward. Escaping is certainly an option, but it was one Edward could not accept. It is not the duty of the older brother to abandon his younger.

The Fullmetal Alchemist takes a deep breath, clenching his left fist.

"You're a gutsy one, I'll give you that." A hint of respect from Scar, his right hand grasped the air, "Very well. I will send you to God, and may your death be the next stepping stone to fulfilling my quest!" His quest of vengeance.

Thunder rumbled in the sky, the rain coldly beats against their skin. Edward lunged forward, raising his fist to punch as Scar goes for his skull. The first movement that defines the results of the battle. The Fullmetal Alchemist will make due to dodge Scar's attacks, whether he succeeds or be overwhelmed by the man's quickness is up for debate. But in any case, he will not give up.

He will fight, and he will survive for Nina's sake, and for Alphonse. There still lies the objective to get their bodies back, and he will not go back on his word.

Eyes on the killer, he ignores the stinging pain to the back of his hand.

* * *

The Holy Grail is a complex creation. It is not simply a mechanical device that swallows killed Servants and reacts the instant it obtains the wish of the winner. It can be considered having its own form of consciousness. When it chooses a Master, it seeks for the candidates "wants", though normally this can only be if the candidate has any awareness to the Holy Grail's existence and wishes to seek it.

However, as of recent, it only needed to detect a great level of will and desire, such as the plea to live, the deep wanting of something unattainable, or generally is a being of iron will. Those who have these as a constant feeling or a moment of passion will be considered worthy, and the knowledge of the Holy Grail's existence is not required.

Edward's strive to survive stirs the Holy Grail into acknowledging him, and upon reading his deep-seated longtime wish, fully accepted him. It had sensed his determination before, but he was already at the brink of death. Now however…

Even if the boy rejects it, the Holy Grail will not be denied the inclusion of the Fullmetal Alchemist, so long as his wish to restoration remains unrelenting.

* * *

Bolting through several blocks in her incessant search, Jeanne prays that she will soon find the Elric brothers in time. Following the trail of destruction, and hearing the murmurs of concerned civilians who had witnessed a battle between two boys and a man. She was careful not to openly sprint like that of a Servant, but she cannot afford to be purposely slow either. At any moment, the boys could be murdered.

 _Please, let me find them._

In her short time spent knowing the brothers, Jeanne has already become quite protective of them. Inspired by their tale of preservation and honestly wished for them to achieve their goal. Yet admittedly, she is surprised at her own reaction. Was she being too emotional? Too involved of their affairs which should not concern her? Jeanne has already stepped onto the boundary of what is the most appropriate for a Ruler to act when she had decided to save the Fullmetal Alchemist from his otherwise fatal wound.

To let that boy live without somehow adjusting his memory leads to jeopardizing the secrecy of the war, which he and the others have eventually been told more about, but that may be because Edward came into contact with a Servant and survived. Thus the Fuhrer insisted to tell the brothers and Edward's superiors about the war so to be cautious if Lancer ever decides to track down the Fullmetal Alchemist again. If Edward had not seen the fight between Servants, it was possible that he and the others would not have known about the war.

Should she had left him to die then?

As Ruler, she wouldn't be reprimanded for doing so. Edward was a witness that needed to be silenced. The stability of the Holy Grail War is her top priority, and by any means must she uphold her duty.

If too many people were to be in the know, this would only bring out fools who craves to satisfy their dangerous ambitions, and the war would escalate beyond control and beyond the country. It would be a world-wide catastrophe. Had she left Edward to die, the secrecy of the war would be secured.

But that was merely a desperate excuse. If the Fuhrer's involvement was any indication, it's likely that he would have informed Eastern Command about the war, and expand his own web within Amestris to catch word of any activities done by the Rogue Servants. The boy's death might not have averted this. In fact, saving him and hearing his account could prove to be invaluable if ever the Lancer that attacked him was actually part of the antagonist group. With this reasoning, preventing the death of the Fullmetal Alchemist was the best decision.

But this was not why Jeanne acted. No such thoughts came to her when she heard the dying plea and whisper for his brother, other than the thought that she couldn't just leave him there. If there was absolutely no other way to save him, she would have only offered her presence and comfort until he gave his last breath. But the fact is that there _was_ a way, and she went for it. She did not think of the consequences from her choice, but held no regrets because she believes it was the right thing to do.

Therefore, in choosing to save his life, she feels responsible to look after him at any opportunity. Whether it has anything to do with the war or not.

From where the staircase is completely in shambles, Jeanne jumps over it and proceeded when she heard the cries of people running away in panic. She increased her speed, a trail of ripples left behind in the thin sheet of rainwater, and at last, she found them.

Before she could be thankful, Edward and Scar had begun to exchange their attacks.

She sprinted, leapt forth three times like being shot from a slingshot. Her sword is summoned. Jeanne does not believe herself to be in the right with killing someone outside of the Holy Grail War, but she will not let the boy die.

Scar caught a figure in his peripherals, coming with such speed that surprised even him, and he jumps aside to avoid the blunt end of a sword, swung by a girl that appears to be a normal civilian.

"Jeanne?!" Edward steps back. Alphonse sighed in relief.

Scar backtracks away from the girl, eyes narrowing at her form behind his dark glasses.

"Are you alright, Edward?" Jeanne looks over to see what the damage is. It seems his automail is destroyed, recalling what she had seen back in Liore, Edward needed only to clap for access to his Alchemy.

To her understanding, it was like drawing a Transmutation circle by slamming his hands together, though certainly an Alchemist like Edward would explain this better. Without his arm, is he incapable to perform Alchemy? Or does he require a chalk to draw a Transmutation Circle, performing with one hand?

She looks further for any more harm done, and saw it.

"Wha-?!"

Edward followed her shocked gaze to his hand. Three red symbols were printed on the skin of his back hand. As a whole, it looked like a pair of arms reaching for a gleaming oval shape in the sky.

He shares Jeanne's expression.

"Command Seals…You're a Master?" The boy heard her say. He opens his mouth to question her, but another voice cuts in.

"Girl."

The shocking development of Edward will have to be put aside for now, Jeanne returns her attention to the man.

"I have no business with you. Step aside."

"I will not," she curtly responds, "Why have you attempted to take the life of this boy?"

"As long as there are creators like him, there will also be destroyers. Alchemists are an existence who lives to deny their true God, and act as if they are Him. There can only be one creator of all living things."

"You are a follower of God? Then surely you know that He would never wish for bloodshed between his children."

"These people have no qualms with whoever's lives they play with. The Sewing Alchemist for example, he creates abominations in the name of science, but it was an act against God himself by forcibly merging two or more species."

Edward felt sick to his stomach when that mad man was mentioned.

"Wicked people like him must be destroyed," Scar continues, "and the only fitting way for them to die is by their own power. I am igniting justice."

"You think yourself righteous? Tell me then, what crime did the Fullmetal Alchemist commit? What of his brother?"

"You can see for yourself. That armor is empty, but I've seen him move and heard a voice. It was Alchemy that made him that way, wasn't it boy?" Scar addressed to Edward who shook, struck by the undeniable truth.

"Even so, these were actions they've done to themselves. They do not purposefully involve others in danger," Jeanne rebukes to deflect the accusation, "From what I have heard and seen for myself, these boys are known as Heroes to the people of Amestris. They do not deserve death, much less from someone who believes themselves to be justified. Only One has the right to judge."

"And that is why I will sent these heathens to Him, so that judgment will be bestowed, and in doing so, this world will return to it's rightful owner, not the accursed ability."

"You are a hypocrite then."

"I won't deny that. I loathe having to use this, but in order to defeat these monsters, I will do whatever it takes, even if I have to turn my back from God's gifts."

Jeanne felt saddened to hear that, but she did not waver.

"Now move. I've made up my mind. If you continue to get in my way, I will fight you."

Jeanne lets out a breath, sheathing her sword. It could have been taken as an act of surrendering, but this was quickly disproven when she wraps around the hilt with straps, tying the sword down so that it would not be easily removed from it's sheathe. She grasps the handle and held it up defensively.

"I don't know what tragedy you have suffered for you to harbor great hatred that defines your existence," she spoke softly, "I see however, that it is not all who you are. Surely, you must have been a kind man once. But I will not let you proceed your mission," pressing her hand to where her heart is, Jeanne spoke resolutely, "For these brothers are under my protection."

Not only out of obligation from saving Edward's life to which shares the same value as Alphonse, but that Edward is a Master, and that he must go through the regulations whether he is to join the war or not. Whatever he decides, Jeanne will make sure this will be done as Ruler.

 _Huh?_ Edward bemusedly stares the back of Jeanne. What was this declaration? Who the hell decided this for her? She didn't owe him anything. He would never have someone risk their life for him, and his brother would feel the same, even if this girl is actually strong and crazy with her story(though seeing the Command Seals imprinted on him…well, he will have to figure this out another time).

Alphonse is just as surprised to hear this from Jeanne, he greatly appreciates her action, but she shouldn't risk her life doing so! He knew she's not weak, but he still worries for her. Yet, looking at her now, seeing without an ounce of fear or doubt in her eyes or form even as the cold drops pelts against her, he can't help but think that...it'll be alright.

Yes, Jeanne is indeed the kind of person who has this affect on people.

"You would defend them? Despite what they are, and what was done to that armored boy? Alchemy is the epitome of evil," Scar practically growled.

Jeanne calmly responds, "Alchemy is not an act of evil, while it can destroy, it can also repair. It is the Alchemist whose own actions must be acknowledged. You have chose to ignore this, and attacked without hesitation. I decided to understand them, and came to accept them regardless of their mistakes."

She finalizes, "We all must learn to understand one another rather then let hate drive us. Otherwise, hatred will spread like an infection, and cause damage beyond healing."

"…This is your last chance girl," Scar warns. "I cannot promise that I will not hurt you. Knowing that, will you resume to act as this boy's shield?"

Jeanne remains. Having a record of combating against foes of different Alchemy, Scar questions if there was reason to this girl's lack of apprehension. He could say she was being overconfident, but Scar is man with impressive instincts, and as of now, he's sensing something not terribly average from this girl. It made him cautious.

He won't kill her. She was a naïve individual who thought there was good in everyone, even in doomed sinners like Alchemists. She certainly doesn't deserve death, so he will do what he can to knock her down, and then swiftly end the Fullmetal Alchemist's life.

"…I've warned you."

"Watch out! He's fast!"

Scar lunged forth as Edward's warning came. The boy was right, Scar _is_ fast for a human, it caught Jeanne by surprise. She raised her pacified sword in defense and the man grasped it. Alchemical lights sparked all around her weapon. Scar needed only to wait until it breaks into pieces. Nothing had survived from his hand that centers on purely destroying whatever he touches.

The laws of Alchemy are as followed: Comprehension, Deconstruction, and Reconstruction. By stopping at the second step which his right arm basis on, anything his hand comes into contact will be obliterated. The formula is the tattoo surrounding the limb that activates as his own Transmutation Circle, but it's design and mechanics were completely unique to the regularity of Alchemy in Amestris. So long as Scar can understand the makings of that he wishes to destroy, it will be.

That's how it always is, it has never failed him. But-

 _It didn't work?!_ Scar was pushed back by the surprising strength the girl is able to achieve. She is definitely no twig.

Scar examines the weapon she held. Not even a dent, it's still in one piece. The only way that this could be possible is if the makings of the sheathe and sword is not as he thought. But what else could those things be made of?

Jeanne quickly evaluated Scar's Alchemy and concluded it's process. Although she is no Alchemist, she understood that the right arm he posses only obliterates whatever he touches. But through the simple law of Alchemy, he must be able to understand what her weapon is made of first. He have thought her sheathe and sword were "mere things", which is exactly why his Alchemy failed.

The weapon is, in it's own form, the Heroic Spirit of Jeanne. It was once a regular sword in her lifetime - the Sword of Saint Catherine, but now it is made of the same materials as a Servant like Jeanne.

So long as Scar cannot comprehend the materials, it is impossible to cause any damage to the sword. Though, should he come to understand the sword's structure, would he be capable to actually destroy it? If he could, then he would be able to destroy Jeanne's body as well - be it that if Alchemy can bypass her EX rank Magic Resistance due to its differing system, but this is untested as of yet.

He's stronger than the average human, but no more than a Servant, and yet Jeanne nearly underestimated him. If he has what it takes to destroy the body of a Servant, then he may have the potential to becoming something as deadly as a _Servant Killer_.

The idea of him being able to destroy her weapon is debatable, although doubtful that such a thing can be possible, it was more so hard to accept, and a dreadfully fearful thing to imagine. This man's capability is frightening. Jeanne's only advantage is her secret as a Servant, otherwise, she would have been in trouble.

 _But even if that were the case, I will not let him pass me._

Scar continues to persist, Jeanne continues to deflect, like an impenetrable defense that doesn't seem to fit the physique of this supposed country looking girl. The Elric brothers watched in amazement, though in the meantime, Edward had been glancing around him to find something he can use to fight Scar as well.

As Jeanne pushed the killer back into quite a distance, Scar pauses to consider his next move. He can create a distraction, blow the ground they stood to divert her attention and then slip pass her.

He comes forth one step, and a bullet shot rung in the air.

"That's enough from you, Scar." At the other end of the road far behind Scar, Roy Mustang held his gun recently fired to the sky, and plenty of Eastern Soldiers aiming their pistols at the State Alchemist Killer. Beside Roy were the few of his own team, Riza Hawkeye, Jean Havoc, and Heymans Breda. Then there is one more man who proves himself to be the most noticeable of them all, being the tallest and clearly the buffest.

Roy resumes, "For the murders of ten State Alchemist, you are under arrest."

Scar narrowed his gaze at him, "No matter how many of you there are, as an agent of God, I will not let anything stop me."

"Is that right?" Roy smirks and steps forth, "Stand back everyone. I'll handle this."

Riza glances at him in the corner of her eye, "Colonel Mustang..." She starts with a tone of warning, or better described as an act to remind her superior who seems to have something vital slip from his mind.

But, what could he have forgotten? He has his gloves. He has Scar on his sight, and if he captures him, he'll surely win some favors, enough to earn a promotion and be a step closer to his ambition. This is practically perfect.

"Colonel Mustang...The Flame Alchemist?" Anticipation courses through Scar like his bloodstream, "So you've come to receive your judgment. I've been blessed."

Leaving the girl's strange power out of his mind, he ran for the Colonel.

"You know who I am and still challenge me?" Roy presses his fingers, "Big mistake."

But it was actually _he_ who made a mistake.

And before this mistake could cost him his life, Riza's leg swung against the back of his heels and trips Roy as he snaps his finger, where instead of flames, smoked puffs out pathetically. The aghast Colonel watched as Scar's hand narrowly misses crushing his head, and Riza fires her two pistol in each hand.

Scar instinctively jumps back, quickly avoided getting shot. The diligent lieutenant, eyes remaining on Scar, spoke to her superior, "Sir, you're useless in the rain."

As powerful as Roy's Flame Alchemy is, in a weather like this that soaks his gloves, he's no more than a normal man. The remembrance and realization severely crushed Roy's ego, and chance for his promotion.

"You best leave this man to the rest of us." The taller, muscular figure steps forth, having a prominent mustache, and manly beauty radiating from him, "As for you Scar, you seek out State Alchemists? Well here I am! The Strong Arm Alchemist, Alex Louise Armstrong is here!"

"Another State Alchemist? God is certainly giving me a bountiful," the State Alchemist Killer prepares to fight.

Alex starts, wearing gauntlets marked transmutation circle, he punches the ground. Alchemical reaction sparks, a row of spikes reaches for Scar at such a pace it would have most definitely hit him before he could register and dodge, but Scar is an agile man, he evades the attacks. When a second row had come for him, Scar slams his palm before it, deconstructing it successfully. He lunged forth, and Alex boldly accepted Scar's desire for a direct battle, responding in kind.

In a span of a moment, clashes between Alchemy and their physical strength shook their surroundings, the entire block their battlefield. Jeanne protectively stood in front of Edward as a cloud formed from the destruction reaches them. It truly is aweing to see an open fight between Alchemists, they're competent as Magi, perhaps more physically adept and powerful as they at times use their environment as weapons. _Incredible..._

"Young lady!"

She perks at the Strong Arm Alchemist's call.

"You've done well defending the Fullmetal Alchemist! I must implore you to take him and run! We will keep Scar busy!"

Edward yelled, "What?! I'm not just gonna leave!"

Roy's team braves through the sidelines of the battlefield, "Don't worry about your brother! We'll keep him covered!" Roy insisted as the team hurries to become the wall for Jeanne and Ed. "Just go. The both of you!" He met Jeanne's eyes. In that instant, Jeanne knew what must be done.

Nodding, she acted on Roy's words, and grasps Edward's remaining arm. "What are you-?!" Like picking up a light sack, Jeanne pulls Edward's arm over her shoulder, her strength denies his refusal to be let go, and she sprints away the battlefield.

"Whoa! That girl could run!" Havoc said as he saw the amazingly fleeting Jeanne.

"Keep your eyes on Scar, Havoc," Roy orders, snapping the soldier's attention back to the fight. "I'll be honest, I'm not exactly sure what to think of that girl, but if she's willing to take the heat for Fullmetal, we may trust her a little." He had seen her refusing to let Scar through when Roy and his men started stationing themselves.

Would this mean he's actually accepting the apparent truth bestowed by the girl? The Holy Grail War? Well, he should, since the Fuhrer himself claims it's existence even though it was still hard to wrap his head around it. But if that really is the case, Roy needs to prepare for whatever chaos this Grail War will bring to his country.

"Put me down! Who the hell do you think you are?!" Edward, quite frankly, is not enjoying the ride of the abnormally agile girl, "And what is this mark on my hand?!"

"Those are Command Seals. I've explained to you about them," Jeanne answers without losing her breath, she pressed her palm against his backhand, "They are a sign of a Master being chosen to fight in the Holy Grail War."

"Cut the crap! A battle to the death for some wish?! Reincarnated warriors?!" Don't even let him get started on this Second Dimension nonsense, "What the hell is really going on?!"

The young State Alchemist refuses to accept this truth, he will not listen to anything else but the very facts he was raised to acknowledge during his growth as an individual. Jeanne sympathizes with his reaction, but she needs him to understand. He must, or else he will be spotted and hunted down by other Masters and Servants, and this boy may not wish to have any part with this ruthless war.

"Whether you believe it, or not. This is happening Edward." The Fullmetal Alchemist puts a halt to his loud disbelief at Jeanne's tone. "Those red marks are what makes you a Master, and others who sees it will think of you as an enemy. You may choose not to see these Servants as I have said for them to be. But they are real, and they are powerful. Have you not seen the feats Lancer has reached which surpasses that of a human and even Alchemy?"

 _The otherworldly, wild, and deadly red burst of power from his spear. The ghostly disappearance of his existence._

"Th-That's..." The boy sputtered, wishing to just spit it out. Forcing himself to come at a simple conclusion that defines this very world, but no matter how much he tried to reason with himself, what he saw did not strike him as mere Alchemy, or that it has any relation to it at all.

 _This can't really be happening..._

"Edward. You may carry the Command Seals, but that does not mean you are obligated to fight."

He looks at her, now listening as he collects whatever composed self he has left.

"The Holy Grail War has an Overseer which acts the will of the Church, handling all procedures in stabilizing the rules of the war, and accepts registry of the chosen Masters. However, you may revoke your right as Master, and transfer the Seals to him."

 _You will not partake in the war you don't wish to._

"He resigns in Central City. Once your superiors has dealt with Scar and you recover, I will guide you to him-" A pulsing vibration touched her senses, halting her words and birthing Jeanne with perplexity.

"Jeanne?"

She knows this feeling. She knows this very well. _It's-_

The thought could not finish once she saw the source of her triggered instincts right before her eyes.

* * *

To the average human, no one could have ever catch what it was that reached Jeanne. It was practically instantaneous. Even those with sharp eyes would miss what came, but at the very least, they would catch the trail it left behind.

Riza Hawkeye is known for her accuracy with a pistol in hand. If something was too fast, she would naturally miss the mark, but if she had hit something, it would never be considered luck. Outside of this, she would always catch what others couldn't; a mug peeking out behind a binder within a bookshelf at the end of the room, or the corner of magazines showcasing half dressed women in every page, shoved hurriedly in a certain man's desk drawer - to her irritation.

Riza Hawkeye's sharp eyes are that as her last name suggests, and as she takes position to shoot Scar while Armstrong keeps him occupied, her back against the brick wall for cover, a light blinks through the gray sky. Riza paused, unsure if something as that actually occurred.

Her attention now honed, she spots more of these indistinguishable things fall at a distance. Multiples of fleeting lights, and faint rumbles afterwards. A heavy weight to her gut when she acknowledged the direction she's peering at, the same way Jeanne and Edward had left.

"Sir," She addresses to Roy, unveiling a hint of trepidation. The colonel looks to his Lieutenant, and follows her gaze.

"...What the hell?"

In the two Eastern soldiers sight, smoke rises beyond the buildings.

* * *

The aftermath of the unexpected instant arrival of the prana infused attack created a dust cloud of the ground's remains, overtaking a part of the road. Jeanne leapt out from the midst of it, her armor materialized, and in her spare hand, she held her second weapon.

The flag she had waved in her lifetime to boost the morality of the soldiers she led to battle. Always by her side. The pole is designed to work as her spear, and the flag itself a white banner with two tails, and a golden crown-like symbol on it. She had successfully blocked the attack with this, and at her moment of relief in being able to defend herself, she was left bewildered.

 _An arrow?_

"What...just...?" Edward was near a loss. By a split second, he spotted something bright coming at them, and before he could even scream a warning to Jeanne, she had already summoned her flag and armor out of thin air, and deflected the attack.

He heard Jeanne gasped and felt his arm released. At his drop, Jeanne deflected the next arrow, and the next, then three more.

"Run Edward!"

A series of arrows comes for her like an army of shooting stars. Jeanne boldly faces through all of them. She spun, twirled, and swung her flag, hitting every arrow and preventing any of them from hitting their mark with incredible speed.

The arrows being fired super-humanly, strong enough to obliterate a boulder in one shot. The fact that every one of these arrows seeks to hit her Spirit Core, and the third sign to confirm what is already obvious, reading the presence of the shooter who stations himself from afar. At a tower that held the Amestris Flag at the top.

An Archer Class Servant is attacking her.

But why? Could this Servant mistake her to be among the regular Seven Classes? Although it would make sense for this to be the case, doubt insists her that there is more to this. She shouted at the Archer to stop, his ears most certainly could reach as far as his sight, but even after revealing by word her status, the arrows did not cease.

Then, he truly is attempting to assassinate her.

The Fullmetal Alchemist watched dumbfounded as she with inhuman reaction continues to swat away these arrows. He snaps out of his stupor, finding his mind to stand and to act. Whipping his head at every direction, he spots a way to reach for cover. "Jeanne! Over here!"

He led the girl to a road which the arrows may not reach, unless the shooter is willing to pierce through buildings without a definite lock on his target. Jeanne follows, keeping up her defense. Some arrows have managed to slip pass, striking her armor and flesh, but these are wounds that can easily be dealt with, it's her Spirit Core that must remain undamaged. If destroyed, Jeanne will die.

She slowly comes to the shield of the building, though she heavily suspects that someway or the other, the Archer's sharp eye or other prominent skill will reach them. The arrows stopped however, and Jeanne ran with Edward down the pavement. Through a couple of blocks, they took refuge behind an alley to regain their stamina, Jeanne's wounds were already self-healing, but the girl nonetheless felt greatly winded.

"Who the hell shot at us?" Edward huffs. As if he does not have enough people coming after him, he needs a damn break!

"A Servant," the girl frankly states in between breaths, "An Archer Class Servant, he is another being like the man you met last night." He looks at her in shock. "Only this Servant wasn't after you, those arrows were aimed specifically for me." She swallows to wet her throat, for a Servant this shouldn't be necessary, but Jeanne is possessing the human body of Rose.

Although the wounds would leave no lasting effect to the other girl, due to her abnormal circumstances, Jeanne suffers human needs such as hunger and sleep, which she hasn't required last night or this morning. If she does not get any rest soon, it will take a toll on her even if it were in battle. She could indeed force herself to keep fighting, but the after effects will be critical to the Servant specifically, and she won't be able to do anything if she is attacked again.

"Why?"

Jeanne shook her head, "I don't know. As a Ruler Class Servant, I am not a competitor. I pose no threat to anyone but to those who have done something unacceptable."

Meaning that this attempt to kill her is to prevent her from discovering a violation done by the Master of this Archer. It's the only thing she can make sense to this... or was it possible that this Archer is one of the rogue Servants Bradley had informed her of?

Her senses shook her to alertness, another presence actively makes himself known, and closing in. "We have to keep going!" She grasps for Edward's hand and drags him along back out to the road.

Despite being caught off-guard, Edward prevented himself from tripping and ran along, though her agility exceeds his. "What's going on?" What could have startled this girl?

She responds forebodingly, "We're being chased by another Servant."

By the quick feet of this second Servant, he seeks to face Ruler. She knows not what this Servant plans to do, or why Archer is assaulting her, but she is certain that if either is after her, Edward will be pulled into this. Jeanne cannot allow this to happen. She must get the Alchemist to safety before confronting the chaser and see to it that she will receive some answers.

They entered through an area where people are present, and Jeanne detected the chasing Servant's speed decreasing. They would never risk themselves attacking with civilians present, this gives Jeanne the only chance she was searching for.

"This way," she pulls Edward towards an alley.

The danger was real, and this girl is the target. Edward knew better than to force himself to break free from Jeanne's hold. If guys just like the Lancer he was nearly murdered by was chasing them, then he had to run with her. But even with the rush, something had caught his attention the most.

This girl had called herself a Servant. Hadn't she claim Servants to be...

 _They are Reincarnated Warriors._

His eyes settles on Jeanne's back. _No way..._

"Edward! Do you know how to get back to Eastern Command from here?"

The Fullmetal Alchemist lately answered, "Huh?...Yeah. I know a way. I should be able to lead us there-"

Jeanne comes to a stop, Edward looked at her with a frown. Why did she stop? They should keep running!

She released her hold from Edward.

"Then go."

Her words didn't seem to register, but Jeanne continues, "Keep your head low and do not stop. Avoid at all cost the path we just left," she looks to where she senses the Servant, he was waiting. "If you come across your superiors, let them know what is happening."

She walks away.

"Where are you going?"

Watching her go, Edward hears her, "I need to investigate this," she pauses, "Please inform your superiors not to involve themselves with this." Even with State Alchemists on their side, they could never hope to face let alone two Servants. The _False Ice Trail Incident_ was an impactful example of this.

"You're going back? Are you going to face those guys alone?" When Jeanne continues without a response, Edward shouted, "Hey! You can't do that! You have to come with me so that we can get backup!"

He snatched her wrist and prevented her from taking a step further. Sternly, he adds, "If these guys are just like the one I met last night, then you need help."

"Your superiors are busy dealing with that man," Jeanne spoke coolly, announcing the hard-on facts, "and even once they dealt with him, no amount of men are be capable to combat these types of beings."

It would be putting several professional animal hunters against a large mythical creature, they would never stand a chance.

"And you think you can do any better by yourself?!" The boy challenged, strands of his wet hair sticks to his forehead. Even for her power, Edward can tell that Jeanne is weary. That useless colonel should have let her slept or eat something! He's not sure how long until Jeanne gives out, but he knows better than to let this girl go.

His golden gaze pierced the gentle aquamarine eyes, although there is the lingering crave to understand, there is also concern for the girl whom he still is convinced to be crazy. Even for her must be ludicrous story, this doesn't mean he will leave her behind, that would be a poor exchange for all the unwarranted act of defense she had always done without hesitation, and the show of kindness his brother once described her. Additionally, there were still many clarifications he needs from her.

He will not let her go, not even when he can be helped to _understand_ what is going on.

Viewing the emotions burning brightly in his eyes, Jeanne could not help but think _Ah, so this is why he is called Fullmetal_. Some would have to see him in action to understand, others would instantly get it after hearing his unrestrained, opinionated personality. But for Jeanne, she need only to look into his eyes, and yes, she agrees with that fitting title full heartily.

A smile forms its way to the girl's features. Jeanne grasps Edward's remaining hand with both her own, "Don't worry about me. Just take care of yourself."

She then picks him up.

"What the-?! What are you doing?!"

A man had walked out of a building, a baker of his own store. Moving to throw away the bag of trash he has in hand when he heard, and saw, the yelling and struggling boy being carried by a young lady, who approaches a dumpster.

"Don't you DARE-!"

Jeanne drops him into the filthy container, and quickly shuts it closed, "I'm very sorry, but I can't risk letting you follow me," The girl noticed the stunned baker and turns to him as she firmly held down the shaking door of the dumpster with one hand. "Please release him in three minutes."

"Let me out NOW dammit!" The dumpster is punched from within.

She reaches for a small metal bar, and bends it around the place where a lock should be and becoming it's substitute security.

The baker watched the puzzling scenario as Jeanne walks away, leaving the agitated, threat-spouting dumpster behind. "Watch over him," she said.

The baker absent-mindedly nodded. He finds it strange enough that he would follow her instructions, but the Baker had the odd yet familiar assumption that these two young ones must have had some sort of Lover's quarrel, so he obliged and prays that they would settle their dispute another time.

"Thank you," she said, and leaves with haste. She takes to the street once more, excusing herself of the wondering bystanders who glanced at her odd attire and her grip to the flag. When she reaches a route where no people are present, she sprinted - the true power of her as a Servant unrestrained with no witness to accuse her as so.

A figure stood on a roof a dozen buildings away. She and the Servant made eye-contact. Jeanne receives a wave from him before he hops to another building.

 _Follow me..._ His fleeting form said. The roles of who is chasing who ultimately switched.

The likeliness of this being a trap is severe, but she must know. Upholding her guard, Jeanne goes after the Servant.

As Ruler is in pursuit, the baker who had promised to watch over the boy trapped in a dumpster steps back as if an angered dog is about to break free. One impact within the container, and the top layer that keeps this dumpster closed dents into a bulb. A second impact, the metal bar shook. One final attack, and the bar breaks. The shoe concealing the automail limb successfully kicks open his prison, freeing himself and inhaling a deep breath of fresh, much nicer smelling air.

"I am _so_ not letting her get away with this..." Grumbled the Fullmetal Alchemist, he glances at the baker, "Which way did she go?"

At the baker's pointed direction, Edward hops out and ran. The young individual's rush to find the girl left an awe impression for the baker as he has quickly takes note of the missing arm with cables hanging loose. Yet seeing the boy's leave, the baker suspects that no matter what he wishes to say in acquiring assistance, that boy would not stop.

 _The young ones these days..._ He thought. The baker returns to his shop, and began reminiscing old times with his loving wife.

Jeanne continues to chase after the Servant who jumps over many roof. She follows him through taking different routes, and even through alleyways. Her plan to intersect him came to mind, but before she could initiate, the Servant changed patterns, and takes to the ground. Jeanne hurries to finally meet the man.

The area she arrived to seems to be a lot where children play soccer, empty of anyone but Ruler and the Servant standing twenty feet away from her. Jeanne remains cautious, sensing the Archer has not move from the tower. She surveys her surroundings for any opening an arrow can be shot through, no matter how narrow they are, and never letting her attention be removed from the Servant in front of her.

There was tension in the air, yet the provoking Servant still greets her with a pleasant expression. He spoke mannerly, "Thank you for accepting my invitation. It would be inconvenient should you remain with civilians around. I wouldn't wish to drag innocents into this."

Jeanne examines the Servant, a Lancer not unlike the one she had previously encountered. Already, she knew the True Name of the man who has led her here, in part of her privilege as Ruler where she will know the name of the Hero she confronts by a mere glance, as if she was reading off their name tag. Lancer smiles, greatly complimenting his handsome feature that would melt the hearts of any women, but Jeanne knew the truth.

Were it anyone else of low Magic-Resistance, they would surely fall for this **Enchantment** of his.

"...Diarmuid Ua Duibhne. What is the meaning of this?"

The Servant that held two spears in bindings, one weapon longer than the other, and himself dressed in a dark green body-suit outfit like the previous Lancer, responds in an appreciative tone, "Ah. You know my name already? I don't recall you at all, and you could not be any of the ladies who have been swooned by this curse of mine, less you would have fell for it by now."

His eyes glinted, "I've been told that there is an extra-class Servant with the ability to read the True Name of any Servant. Are you this class then? Are you..."

Jeanne answers, "I am the Ruler Class Servant, mediator for the Holy Grail War; Jeanne D'Arc."

Logically, she should have kept this information to herself, it is obvious what this Servant intends to do. She would have more an advantage should she kept this name quiet. But since she is not competing for the Grail, and that she is a neutral Servant who sides with no one, revealing her name is a sign of her status as Ruler, making her claims all the more genuine.

"The young Saint who bravely took to the front while waving her flag," the man revealed to be Diarmuid did not know Jeanne in his lifetime, but having obtained the many names of great figures from the Throne of Heroes, he is aware of her legend.

The green Lancer takes a stance, "I am glad to receive your name. It brings more respect to the battle, and to our opponents."

"I see... Answer me this; why do you and Archer wish to eliminate me?" If both wishes to kill her, then the certainty of this Lancer and that Archer's alliance is left unspoken.

"It is as my Master commands, and his as well. Is that not a Servant's duty? For us, there is no wrong in following the order of their Master."

Certainly an unfathomable, yet not entirely incorrect logic - if one was nothing more than a tool. But there will be instances of tested standards that will stubbornly stick true to the person's character. Jeanne could not say so however, as the Lancer is ready to strike.

"Prepare yourself, Saint Jeanne. I'm curious to see the extent of a Ruler Servant's power, and so I will not be holding back." He will strike her before she can utilize her privilege - the Command Seals.

"Lancer-"

There was no use to ask for any more elaboration, to understand the meaning behind this violation of attacking Ruler. Lancer quickly closes the distance, Jeanne competes against his strength through her weapon, and narrowly dodged his second spear that aimed for her abdomen. Even though her armor would protect her, she knew the power one of his spear held, and her protection is useless against it.

In the next second, they entered battle. As they fought, the Fullmetal Alchemist steadily comes closer to their whereabouts.

* * *

Scar avoids another attack from the Strong Arm Alchemist. He is quite an opponent, much more difficult than the previous State Alchemists he has killed. Impressively quick despite his size, and physically powerful. In addition to his Alchemy, this man will be no easy foe.

However, there is a noticeable flaw in the Strong Arm Alchemist's attack. Whenever he would go for a punch, his swing is always too wide, leaving Scar chances to escape direct contact and go for a kill-shot to his skull. However, Alex is able to avoid his attacks, and backs away.

"Impressive," Alex says, "You've managed to survive for this long, but let's see how you do against what has been passed down in my family for generations!"

He threw a handful of rubble in front of himself. With his Alchemy, he punches the rubble into becoming spikes and shot them like cannons. Scar evaded, but his robe was torn through. The fired spikes impacted against a vacant building and it's wall broke down.

"Watch it Major! You'll destroy the city at this rate!" Havoc shouted some sense to the muscular man.

"Destruction and creation are two sides of the same coin! You must destroy to create!" The uniform Alex wore, suffering tears received from the battle, shredded at his movement to flex, "That is the law of the universe!"

"And there he goes again... Is there ever a day he doesn't strip?" Riza exasperatedly sighs.

"That's just how he is," Roy shares her attitude, and examines the Killer, "Scar's Alchemy seems to stop at the second step in the stages of transmutation. Centering only in deconstruction."

"Some follower of God if he sees Alchemist as heretics. If that's how he thinks then he's on the same boat he's burning," Havoc comments.

Roy frowns, "But why State Alchemists specifically?" If Scar truly sees Alchemy as evil, he should be after all Alchemists. Something is missing in this puzzle. What is the man's purpose for his targeted list of victims?

"...Dammit." He looks to where he saw the smoke, the place where Edward and Jeanne went. He wanted to know what was happening over there, but he can't turn his back on Scar. The best he could offer was to send word for reinforcement by radio and direct them to the place of the rising smoke.

Unfazed by the exuberant character of Alex, Scar resumes his attack. There seems to be a pattern to the Strong-Arm Alchemist, and just when Scar had thought him figured out, Alex quickly backs away.

There was strategy to his actions, this whole time, he was hiding the view of Hawkeye, who has Scar in her sight with a pistol in her hands. She pulls the trigger.

Only a second to spare, Scar kicked off the ground. The bullet struck, his dark glasses knocked away in broken pieces.

Riza clicked her tongue, "Too fast." But as she looks a little longer, she and the rest of the soldiers were astounded at what the killer had been hiding.

Red eyes glared intensely. A particular feature only known for one race to have. The shocking revelation of what this man is lead to a total understanding for his actions. Truly, he was not a man who claims righteousness, but is out for pure vengeance.

"An Ishvalan!"

Red eyes. Dark Skin. White hair. The characteristics of an Ishvalan, people who lived in the desert region of Amestris - their homeland, Ishval. A land which Amestris had brought a bloody war to.

Long ago, a civil war initiated when an Amestris military officer accidently shot an Ishvalan child. The Ishvalans at the scene claimed the shooter to have done this point blank range, but whatever the reason, it brought great anger to the people of Ishval and they declared war. There already existed tension between Ishval and the military, and this was the breaking point.

The Ishvalan War was at best described to be a massacre against the people of Ishval, opposing better equipped and better trained soldiers, Ishval could only struggle before it declared its loss. But even then, by orders of King Bradley, the Ishvalan people were to be completely annihilated. Neither the elderly, women, or children were spared from this.

Roy Mustang, Riza Hawkeye, Alex Louise Armstrong, Maes Hughes, and the victims Scar has killed. All had a part in the extermination. It was a war that will forever haunt the dreams of many, no matter how much time has pass.

It makes complete sense now. Scar, an Ishvalan, most likely to have been a soldier or citizen from the war on the side of Ishval, is out for the blood of State Alchemists in repayment for the killing of his people, for the greatest damage done to the holy land were by the hands of those who wielded powerful Alchemy.

Soldiers were undoubtedly present at the war such as Riza and Hughes, but it was the accursed Alchemy Scar recalls the most. Therefore, while he cannot vanquish the military as a whole in a realistic sense, he can cripple them. By taking the lives of the Alchemist who had a part in the Ishvalan War, he will bring the military to it's knees.

As God his witness, he will make them pay for what was done to Ishval, and for those who were taken from him.

But it seems their day of reckoning will have to be put on hold. In his current position, Scar has bitten off more than he could chew as he is heavily outnumbered, and the State Alchemist before him was a tough one. As wrathful of a man Scar is, he is not reckless, he will ensure to live long enough to bring about the military's ruin. For now, it is best to retreat.

Scar slams his hand against the ground, alchemical reactions sparks and he created a hole beneath him. The sewers open to him, he jumped in and ran into the dark. He was gone in a moment.

Orders were instantly shouted by the soldiers to chase after him, more appropriately so to avoid directly entering the hole in order to be at a certain advantage, they move quickly to find all entrance of the sewers to cut the killer off.

"Sorry I missed the shot," Riza spoke to Alex.

"You hardly should be," the muscular man takes a deep breath, announcing how much stamina he had lost, "You kept him at bay. I felt as if he would have gotten me someway or the other."

"Take some breaths, Major," Roy said, looking at a certain direction, thinking of the girl and Fullmetal, "We're far from being done here."

And from the conclusion of this battle that left with no absolute winner, but remnants of the entire block, Maes Hughes poked his head out around the corner, "Is it over? Honestly, the longer I stay with you super-human freaks, my health gets worse..." He is only a normal man after all.

* * *

Jeanne deflects another attack. The unpredictability of which spear the opposing Lancer will use his great advantage, and although the curse of his short spear would not affect her so long as she is able to have a foot in the pond of her Noble Phantasm by holding onto her flag, he was incredibly skillful. Even if the curse would not affect her severely, he could still cut her with the blade.

Jeanne is a powerful Servant as Ruler, but disregarding her privileges, she is a normal girl who neither had the complete training of a true warrior nor experienced a long life of battle - her life ended at the same age she had first took up the flag. Lancer is a better fighter in these regards, he could have easily defeated her many times over. But Jeanne has proven herself to be incredibly difficult to simply kill.

However, as much as she is pushing herself to keep Lancer at bay, a sense of menace rattled her instincts.

Was it Archer? Is he about to unleash a powerful attack? Was Lancer conducting something to strike a fatal wound on Jeanne. No…

 _There is another form of danger within the area…_

Her thoughts is whisked towards an arrow arriving at incredible speed.

Posted underneath the roof of a tower, within an open space where he feels the air, a large bell hung motionlessly behind him, Archer watches over the battle between Lancer and Ruler that were occurring so far and hidden behind buildings.

No human could ever reach it by sight from where he stood, but as a Servant of his class, he could see even farther should he be any higher, and saw the instance of movements through some openings, determining what is happening.

This is especially effective with his A-Rank Personal Skill: **Clairvoyance**. Thus, his sharp eyes had captured the creasing brows of Ruler that weren't of struggles, but of sensing an impeding doom.

 _She's getting suspicious_ , he evaluated. He gathers the prana to fire another of his arrow. _I better keep her busy_.

Archer carries no ill-feelings for the girl, in fact, hearing her to be this famous Saint, he respects her - he would respect all Heroic Spirits who has fought for the sake of something. For Archer, he fought for the sake of the people, and peace. It was orders from his Master that prompts him to do this. After getting a good grip of his Master's personality, defiance would have him be under a Command Seal.

The only sort of satisfaction here is that the boy with golden hair is not present. Archer does not know who he is, but he would rather not involve bystanders, and it seems Ruler had rescued this boy from whatever disturbance is happening in this city. Considering her actions, he had aimed away from the boy, as his target is the Servant that carries him.

It may be a different story however, if he were to find out that this boy is a Master. Although, Archer has his specification to target only Ruler. Any Master he may spot, they are only a secondary concern.

He fires another round, every arrow built solely on prana, twenty of them in one shot, and he has expectation that none of them would truly hit their mark if he wishes to kill Ruler. That was neither his mission, nor Lancer's.

This falls on another member, who should be in position by now. If Ruler were to focus, she may be able to sense even that Servant despite his granted skill due to his class, but if Archer and Lancer keeps her distracted, then she may not be able to pinpoint their _Assassin_.

Not until his **Noble Phantasm** is unleashed, and by then, it would be too late for Ruler to escape from its range. If she had a power that will help her survive even that Noble Phantasm, especially with those Command Seals, then it must be initiated the instant Ruler is trapped, quickly before she will react. Even if it fails to conduct an instant kill, she would be injured to the point where she cannot defend herself against all three Servants for long. The moment their Assassin activates his Noble Phantasm, it will be the end of Ruler.

"Dammit! Where did she go?!" Edward had thought it best to get back to where Jeanne was first attacked, but no sign of her. However, he caught something glimmer in the sky northeast of where he is. It was for a split second, he would have missed it entirely had he blinked. Putting his chance on blind luck, he ran the way the 'falling star' fell.

Although Edward cannot access his Alchemy in his current condition, he is far from being helpless, and he refuses to let Jeanne go on her own. He wants to know what is happening, and he cannot leave Jeanne when she is practically exhausted, she needed some type of support.

Taking cover behind buildings with the paranoia of wherever the arrows had come from, he comes to hear a noise, though muffled by the rain, the sounds of clashes between blades were unmistakable, bringing his mind back to last night's event. Despite what happened that time, he follows the sounds.

Within a moment, Edward had arrived, and once again, another battle between Servants occur before his eyes. Taking cover right by a parked car, he observes, and ensures that nothing around him will cause his presence to be known.

An amazing display of skills and reaction too quick to be called human, Edward nearly gawked. Their weapons repeatedly piercing the air, the ground they stood bearing through their strength with cracks and pieces broken off. Stronger than a human.

Could it be that these two really are something else? Are they what Jeanne calls to be **Heroic Spirits**?

Witnessing the battle go on, he then acknowledged an abnormality. Seemingly unknown by either Servants, a third person silently waits within an alley, his form shrouded in the dark, and Edward can't seem to actually... _tell_ that someone is there. Almost as if to say there is only darkness, but he knows what he is seeing. _Who is this guy?_

Realization wove his expression when the figure held a large object, an undoubtedly sharp thing.

Silent and unmoving. Assassin awaits for his moment. The titular Saint of France remains oblivious of him, even with her faint suspicion that there is another enemy nearby.

Due to his **Presence Concealment** , Assassin's entire existence is hidden though it is rather low, but as long as her attention remains on Lancer, sparing only some for Archer, she could continue fighting without ever considering to turn her head and see where he hides.

His skill does not make him invisible, but rarely anyone would sense him unless they are right in front of him. Ruler may be an exception of this due to her class or aptitude as a Servant, but so far she has not made any awareness to where he is.

He lifts his weapon, sensing his chance nearing. Assassin has no actual animosity towards the girl who hails from the same country as he, but he held no objections in killing her. He is not only a Servant who is following the will of his Master, but an Executioner.

An Executioner's duty is to announce the judgment of the convicted by dropping the blade and cutting the life from the body. Whether they are good or evil, innocent or guilty, it is not his place to question, but to proceed as it is law. By this process, he is not a proper Assassin. Rather than hide and strike when it proves to be favorable, he brings about death to those who are brought to him. That is what he is doing right now. He is biding time until the moment of Ruler's judgment is upon her, brought down by his hatchet sword.

It's uncertain if he actually wielded this weapon once in his life. During his era, there was only the use of the guillotine and not by axe wielded by man. Yet there was no revulsion, rejection, or even the slightest bit of foreign feel holding this _sword_. If anything, wielding this weapon is like being the guillotine itself, and he came to understand what it means to not only execute, but to be the weapon of an Executioner. It was almost home.

There was no joy in this, but he does not deny it and could not help but smile, as if he detects the irony of being a guillotine since he also has his knowledge around the medical field; A man who can bring about life and death, but this was not what made him smile almost sadly.

 _It seems there is no other way of life but this one_ , so were his thoughts.

Of course, there was no way to escape it, as this has been his family's way of life for generation, and though he had hated and cried at this fate when he was a child, he came to accept that there is simply _no other way of living_.

And in his life, he ended up killing two people he loved from the bottom of his heart.

A loud clatter like glass solidifies his attention. The whistle of Archer's arrow comes to take Jeanne by surprise once more, but there is an alteration to its aim, heading for her feet. Lancer acts to thrust his long spear for her heart. This would no doubt cause Jeanne to retreat by five feet.

The perfect position for Assassin to activate his Noble Phantasm.

The strange curved blade of his sword points to the sky. Ruler's time of judgment has come, just as it happened in her life. From death, hope will arise, so he believes. His only form of compassion was for this to be instantaneous as oppose to the cruel end bestowed upon her by the accusing masses.

He begun uttering an aria.

 **"Death is Hope for Tomorrow..."**

Every hair on Jeanne's skin prickled. Something is coming. _Instant death is at hand!_ But where?

"Jeanne! Beside you!"

The voice of Edward reaches her, and her eyes were to the alley on her right.

 **"La Mort-"**

She dashed away, **"Luminosite-"**

 **"-Espoir!"**

 **"-Eternelle!"**

The following was too out of this world, shrouded in a dark fog.

Black arms grappled and trapped Jeanne whose body is encased in light. A guillotine the size of a tower, its blade hangs above her. She was pulled, pushed, and held down. A click and snap of the contraption's activation. The blade drops.

Logically, her head should have fallen off. But at Assassin's Noble Phantasm's dissolve, Jeanne remains standing, her head still attached. Blood escapes from the nape of her neck, and she tasted the iron liquid flowing from her throat, but she remains in one piece.

Her own Noble Phantasm is best described to be the ultimate defense, but she had performed it late, and without completely releasing it by adding its aria, she was affected, but she was not killed, and she was not grievously wounded either. She made no complaints.

"What the hell...?" Astounding fear drenched the golden eyes of the young State Alchemist. Just what _was_ that? _What was that?_

Lancer grimaced. Their plan has failed. They neither killed nor greatly injured Ruler, all thanks to this boy who appeared unexpectedly, and who has called out the name of this girl as if he knows her.

He briefly acknowledged the boy, and did a double-take at the prominent red Seals. "A Master?"

Jeanne reacted, instantly coming in front of Edward. Her drive to be this boy's shield caused Lancer to frown. He was told that Ruler is a special class who is without a Master, but could that be a mistake? Or is this boy not Ruler's Master, but simply another competitor? Was his Servant here then? Or had he even summoned one yet?

"How intriguing."

Opposing Lancer's creased brows, Assassin comes out of hiding, wearing a ghostly smile. "Your flag was able to defy the judgment of my Noble Phantasm. Granted, you had casted your power thanks to that boy."

Jeanne frowns deeply, reading the name of the third Servant as he adds, "I had to wonder though, would you have survived without that warning, or flag?"

La Morte Espoir. A manifestation of the true execution tool. A Noble Phantasm where it is possible to induce a certain-kill. In order to avoid this, you need not reliance on immunity to curses, good luck, or however high of a Magic Resistance one posses, but the ability to resist Fate itself with the mind.

To see the blade fall, the instinctive logical reaction would be "I'm going to die," with that mentality, this will certainly happen. Even if one defies it and is able to survive, they would still be heavily wounded. This Noble Phantasm is especially effective against those with an evil attribute, so even if it were to fail without the boy's interference, this would not have surprised Assassin at all.

"Jeanne D'Arc. Famed for the unwavering faith that no doubt must be empowered by a strong heart and mind, supposedly wrongly prosecuted. I had hopes to test the truth of your innocence...but it seems I will have to try again."

If the next time La Morte Espoir is used and succeeded, then he was merely revealed the truth, and Jeanne's terrible end was actually just. This is a personal interest Charles-Henri Samson has in mind to find out.

"But regardless of your guilt, I will personally bring about your execution, oh Saint of Arc."

"...I will tell you this, Assassin. I am indeed guilty of many things." Even for the adoration of those who were inspired by her accomplishments, Jeanne felt no love for what was done by her hands. Murder is still Murder, regardless of how right she feels to fight and has no regrets, she has broken a commandment ordered by God himself. In that way, she sees herself as guilty.

"I have killed, and I have led many soldiers to be killed. By that regard, I should not even be considered a Saint."

The two Servants before her gently recoiled at her words, while Edward looked at her, confused.

"...I'm surprised to hear that," Assassin lifts his weapon, "If that is the case, then I give you my word, that you shall be properly judged by my hand."

"I deserve judgment the same as any, but I cannot allow this to happen now. Explain to me why all of you wish to seek my end?"

"Unfortunately, neither of us are in any position to reveal that much to you," Assassin said as Lancer comes to his side. "It is simply our orders."

A group of Masters sought to destroy Ruler? Then there is no more consideration. These must be the rogue Servants, directed by their Masters. But why? What diabolical plot exists beyond her knowledge? If it's to empower the Servants by eating the innocent souls, then that she could fathom, but as it was said to her by Bradley that the victims life-forces were not drained, they were slaughtered…

No, this is not the time to think more on that. She must figure a way to defeat all these Servants or better yet, escape.

She can use a Command Seal on each of them, but she only has two, and if the Masters of Lancer, Archer, and Assassin truly wishes to eliminate her, they can simply overwrite her Command by spending their own Seal. If she wishes to escape along with Edward, then she must be ready to use a Seal to halt the Servants movements for a brief moment.

But will it work as she hopes it would? Now that these two Servants has seen Edward's Command Seals, and most likely Archer has seen them as well, they would possibly go after him as another opponent left to be discarded...What on earth should she do?

The decision with unknown results is put on halt when another sensation strikes her. Not only her, by the other Servants have also felt this, and to their knowledge, they should not be expecting this.

A pair of boots beats against the gravel, grabbing the Servants on ground and Edward's attention. They looked to the road.

It was a lone figure, draped from head to toe a black rain coat, drops of the weather bouncing off his cape. The shadow of the hood hiding the face of this newcomer but the mouth and pale skin.

 _This feeling…_

It was unmistakable what this person is, and before anyone could react, the newcomer lunged forth. Black swarms his palm, and his sword appears.

"A Saber?!"

The confirmed Saber struck the weapon of Assassin who had put up his weapon in time, but the power behind the new Servant's strike so powerful, and the assault itself a surprise, Assassin could not compete with it, and he flew into a building.

Jeanne takes the stunned Edward away, pushing him until they were at a distance. Holding up her flag defensively, she prepares herself for this new Servant. However, Saber hardly seemed interested in them, only a glance was spared before facing the distanced Lancer, who was highly cautious of the new arrival.

The new Servant grasps the front of his rain coat, and allowed the wind to take it at its removal. The Saber's appearance now for all to see.

It was a girl like Jeanne, similar features like hers, but the aura of this Servant was a complete inversion of the holy maiden. Pale blonde hair, refined and in a bun, fitting for someone who must be of a high social class as her posture is like so. Her face young and disturbingly stoic, as were her eyes of yellow orbs that could cause anyone to shudder under her gaze.

She at first wore a pasty black uniform that seems more fitting to be worn by a man, and even makes her look as such if not for her feminine form, but within a moment, she summons her armor.

A shadowy dress, soft to look at, but no comfort was offered. Her black armor a grayish tint, with red creeping around like veins, pulsing with prana. Some kind of concealment surrounds her jawline, as if a dark monster is consuming her. A black mask over her eyes. Her sword matches the color of her wear, with luminous red markings over and below the hilt. She was imposing, the air about her cynical, depressing, and tyrannical.

She is undoubtedly royal.

And Jeanne could not believe the True Name of this figure. _Surely, this cannot be that same King…_

The King who has brought forth peace among a war-torn country for a decade. A King who is a knight among all. The ideal hero Britain had craved for...Never mind the shocking truth of her gender, how can the _King of Knights_ that brought about hope and the victory of her kingdom, be this Servant who silently spiels only mercilessness and the crushing defeat of her enemies?

Even if Jeanne believes her True Name Discernment to be flawless, she still inclines to doubt. Is this really Arthur Pendragon? _This is...wrong._

This Saber Servant is certainly Arthur Pendragon, but the spirit about her was unlike her legend. Jeanne could understand someone like Mordred, or even Lancelot to have this kind of aura, but not their King. Even though Jeanne did not live in the same era as King Arthur, thus does not know who the King of Knights truly is, she still utters a thought that this is somehow wrong.

Or was this the truth about Britain's perfect knight and king? If so, then she is no Saber, but an Alter version of King Arthur.

The dark Servant raised her equally dark sword, Lancer takes a step back. Should he retreat or should he fight? To answer his question, Saber Alter came forward, breaking the ground she stood. Reading Lancer's plan of action, she will not allow Lancer to leave.

 _You will die by my sword._

They clashed blades. Her power so overwhelming, it quake the earth. It seems an attempt to escape will not be easy for Lancer.

And so they fought.

"This sure just got interesting," Archer mused in the tower, having witnessed the swat away of Assassin. He forms another arrow, "I should go ahead and support Lancer-"

The hint of cheerfulness swiftly went when a signal for _danger_ rung his entire body. He leapt to the side, and avoided the multiples of knives shot for his Spirit Cores.

Taking use of the arrow he had just formed, Archer pulls it behind the string of his crimson bow. His eyes searched for the one who tried to assault him, but he sees and felt no such presence, until another round of knives shot to his shoulders. A hail of them actually, and it took only a split second for him to realize that they were coming from the ceiling. Archer was a target out in the open this way, he needed to leave.

So after striking the knives away from his heart and head with his bow, his **Robust Health** skill avoids any actual severe wounds, he jumped out of the tower. Twisting his body in mid-air, he fires his arrow where the Servant must be hiding. An explosion, the ceiling lit as the roof began to crumble, but no sign of the Servant, and he cannot sense the presence or tell if they have died.

 _Ah, that must be what class you are._

Civilians nearby shrieked when they heard and witnessed the destruction of the tower's roof and quickly fled for safety. Some rubble has fallen, but Archer quickly shot countless arrows at each rubble into mere pebbles, and the harmless pebbles tapped the heads of the running folks who will live another day.

No matter what, even if these people are not those who lived in the world he is from; the Archer Arash will remain in service of the people. To protect the people.

And that is why he cannot fight here. Having leapt quite a feat, Archer reached the roof of a building, and went to the next few. In pursuit, the second enemy Servant took ground and ran through the street, even for his dark clothing, he moves like a shadow people have missed, and enters an alley where the darkness hides his form. Quick as the whip of a ripped edge black flag, his white skull-like mask was the only thing that stands out in the dark.

The heavy weight of Saber and Lancer's attacks vacuumed and spat out the air around them. The ground they fought on bore cracks, slashes, and chunks of the earth broken off. Saber attacks without restraint, her power so great that Lancer cannot hold it back with his own and so merely danced to avoid her blade.

The ruthlessness she bestowed could qualify her as a Berserker, but the cold indifference she wore like a helmet that has not once been spoken through describes the sane intelligence she has. As if she understood the opponent before her is no more than an obstacle to cut down.

Jeanne etched herself and Edward further away, a battle between Servants is always a magnificent one. Something no mortal should get close to less they would be eaten by the essence of their blows, but it was Saber's display of swordplay that Jeanne worries over, yet certainly no one would think themselves a fool to come any closer while the dark Servant fights.

With Lancer busy against Saber, this was Edward's chance to run, but enraptured by the events happening in front of him, it's almost as if he had forgotten his own mortality should he remain even with Jeanne here. She must snap him out of his trance and tell him to run, but even she cannot do so much as this, for this battle has also taken her breath away.

Though it was less of a battle, and more of Lancer trying desperately not to be killed. His only advantage was that in regards to Saber's immense power, she is slow. Lancer was able to go in for a strike multiple times. The Saber was reactive, but it doesn't appear to be out of instincts. Yet even with the advantages, she was a beast of a Servant. Truly, a monster.

She may be just as strong as the Saber on _their_ side.

The dark Servant swung for Lancer's neck, and the knocked away Assassin reemerges. Saber heard him and spun around, deflecting his blade with her own. Lancer found his opening and thrust his long spear, but Saber had already kicked the Executioner away and knocked aside Lancer's attack. The two Servants joined to combat her, but even together, Saber was not the least bit overwhelmed.

 _I may have to use it now…_ Lancer contemplates.

There is a risk of his identity being revealed, but perhaps not if he keeps his second spear in secret. Either way, he must do something against Saber, or else he and Assassin will be killed. He questions why their Archer hasn't been supporting them, and then the thought came that this Saber is not alone. If that is so, then he should not expect any help from Archer now.

 _It's settled then._

The bindings around his spear shreds away, **Gáe Dearg** and it's power unveils.

He looks for the right moment. Assassin takes the lead. Saber pushed him away with her sword, and goes for Lancer. Their blades crossed, and Lancer lost his grip of the red spear. Or so Saber thought.

Lancer blocked Saber's sword with his shorter spear. She overpowers him and cuts his shoulder, pushing to reach his spirit core - his heart. Assassin moves to strike her back however, so she retreated her blade to defend herself against him. One powerful strike, Assassin was left an opening for Saber to take his head.

As she acts to do just that, Lancer reclaimed his fallen red spear with the toes of his foot with movements that can only be seen as cunningly skillful, kicking it back to his grip. Saber felt no worry though, she had her armor, she'll avoid any serious wound. She resumes her sight on Assassin who was there for the taking.

Assassin released a teeth clenching growl as Saber cuts across his chest, she would have gotten deeper were it not for the surprising, piercing feel of Diarmuid's red spear tearing through her skin. She retracts her blade and swat Gae Dearg away. Leaping back, Saber distanced herself from the two Servants.

Blood spills from both side. Assassin coughs out red liquid, suffering internal injuries while his heart barely avoided a direct attack. Saber's side bleeds beneath her armor, the armor that should have protected her from Lancer's spear, but it was as if it became a ghost that only solidified once it reached her flesh.

"...An Anti-Mana weapon. Are the knights in your time adept in performing only desperate deceits?"

So the Saber _does_ have a voice.

"When it comes to battling someone as powerful as you, any means would only serve to compliment just how threatening you are," Lancer responds.

"Oh? You certainly have an assured attitude," Saber raises her sword, "I will have to slice that tongue from you then." Prana swarms her sword, a red and black wave steadily circles the weapon.

She's about to unleash something. It could be her Noble Phantasm, or it could simply be a powerful attack.

Whatever it is, Lancer and Assassin have strayed from their original goal long enough.

"On the contrary, you are far too strong even for the both of us," if their own Saber was here, then this fight would be in their favor, "And I have my suspicion that you did not come alone."

He then heard the voice of his Master, ordering his and Assassin's retreat, "...Yes. Perhaps we should call this an inconclusive battle, for now."

A cloud seems to be passing by, but the ground grew darker. Saber looked up.

Dozens of arrows sought for her from the sky, fired by Archer who has found a new viewpoint, but this was his last action before Assassin discovered him again, and the Archer leaves at his Master's command. Saber furthered herself from Lancer and Assassin who has healed himself in thanks to his personal skill.

"Let's go, Assassin," Lancer told him.

Assassin nods, and follows the Servant. They dashed for the road, and disappears when they bolted around the block.

"I will not let you escape," Saber promised with a low voice, and after knocking away the arrows aimed for her, she gives chase to the fleeting Servants, leaving behind Jeanne and Edward.

A long, silent moment passes, and Jeanne finally breathes. So it appears that Saber had come to protect Ruler, by order of her Master? As dark of a hero Saber was, Jeanne could at least give some gratitude to her and her Master.

She remembered the boy standing behind her and quickly turn, grabbing his shoulders.

Just as she expected, he was stunned into speechlessness. She could see the boy question reality in his eyes, and she takes into thought of what are the necessary steps to calm down an individual who has witnessed a battle between Servants.

Even though this was his second time, he had viewed something that no Alchemists could ever reach. Something that even for Magi, it was too incredible to perform unless they were incredibly gifted and powerful. The Noble Phantasms.

Though the precautions has to be issued, another matter came to her attention.

"Why did you come?"

Edward blinked rapidly, his self-awareness regained, and looked at the angered expression of the girl in front of him.

"What did you hope to do without your arm? Why didn't you run to safety?"

Normally, Edward would have rebuked, but he was still recovering. Jeanne shook his shoulders, "You could have been injured! Or worse! Don't ever do something like this again!"

"I..." The young State Alchemist looks to the destroyed ground that was the Servant's battle field, he saw the broken pieces of the building where Assassin had been thrown into, and back at the girl with bags beneath her eyes that were brimming with scold and worry.

"...Sorry." That was all he could say, and with his thoughts adjusted, he comes to a very simple conclusion that he had already came to upon recent events. How in spite of his intelligence, there was more to the world he was unaware of. Instigated by his failure to protect Nina, the near death experience by the red spear of the Blue Lancer, and the battle he had just seen between powerful beings.

From here, he stares at the prominent red symbols on his backhand.

 _I really don't know anything, at all._

* * *

 **Bombarded with things beyond his knowledge and comprehension, the Fullmetal Alchemist and the Holy Maiden Savior recuperates.**

 **A/N: And so the story continues! I'm filled with such passion and happiness to write more of In Exchange For A Miracle, and I'm so grateful for all the reviews!**

 **I'll be answering some questions, but to a few I'll avoid so that I wont be revealing any major spoilers!**

 **ArcherShirou: The Brotherhood Storyline and the Fate Stay Night Storyline are semi-crossed with each other, and Stay Night will not be the only one, so you will be seeing many rehash, although, I try my best to keep them different and entertaining. I should tone it down, but if it feels right, I don't know how else to change it.**

 **Magecraft is hidden for several reasons, but the most prominent one is that Magi are a rather reclusive kind of group with a conscious to keep what they know a secret from the public for the belief that it will cause great disasters, and this belief is constantly justified with what Alchemy has done, take the Ishvalan war for example. Alchemy is incredible, but just like Magecraft, it can be seriously dangerous. There is another reason which better explains this, but it will be revealed another time.**

 **I agree that Charisma is not mind control, it's to "move the person" emotionally or something like it. But I'm very sorry I wrote it in another way.**

 **I've read that Servants are indeed a sort of copy to their true Heroic Spirits ascending from the Throne of Heroes so that the real Heroes won't be corrupted, and once they die in the Holy Grail War, they will be consumed by the Grail as prana, and that's why if they're summoned again for another war, they won't remember the last, because they are not the same Servant from before, like a restart - Fate/Grand Order is an exception to this.**

 **I do like the idea that there should be some little bit of their true selves, but then this would drive Edward even crazier. Also, they would still not be completely genuine.**

 **Yolea's Irk: I haven't seen much of Mooncell, I have some grasp of it though not totally. I thought of this story as a Grand Order kind of deal, but I am involving Servants from other Fate franchises.**

 **Now, the question all of you wish to know; who will be Edward's Servant?**

 **If I post two more chapters, I'm fairly certain that you will all find out! :D**

 **Well, thank you again for reading! I wish to make a few clarification however. I wrote in the last chapter that Jeanne has a connection to OVER twenty Servants, not Twenty exactly. Please excuse me for my vague writing, I haven't actually gotten a good grasp of the amount of Servants there are beside the characters that will be presented in this story, so let's say there's actually 27 Servants as of now. The number goes up and down with the defeated Servants to the newly arrived Heroes. It's a headache for Jeanne to be sure.**

 **Also, Vlad III is NOT Isaac's Servant, the Freezing Alchemist is already dead like it happened in the Brotherhood anime.**

 **That's all for now! Please leave a kind and honest review and do leave me with any more question about the story by Review. Thank you so much again! Have a blessed day!**


	5. The Crystal Alchemist

Chapter 5: The Crystal Alchemist

The rain lightens into small drizzles.

Jeanne wordlessly stares at Edward, disgruntled, and having a mind to continue scolding him before coming to a sigh. Despite his reckless actions of following her and practically announcing his presence, the other Servants were gone now. She could feel them grow distant every second, no doubt Saber chasing after. Yet even with the imminent threat passing, something still didn't feel quite right.

Although Saber's Master had their Servant act to protect Jeanne, perhaps they expected some kind of reward with blessings of the Ruler Servant. It could be that they had hoped for her to join Saber in the fight, but they were mistaken.

Jeanne does not side with anyone, whether it would mean an assassination attempt on her or the initiated battles between Saber against the other Servants, they are of different matters, and the Holy Maiden had remained on the sidelines to act as referee for the combative Servants, while being the shield to protect Edward who in her eyes she recognizes to be only a bystander.

Confirming the Servants to have gone far enough, she releases Edward's shoulders. The time to evaluate his condition physically and mentally was her main concern, but they have to get moving now. They must get to the others back at East Command.

"We should get going," She said, and wonders if the soldiers have already dealt with Scar by now.

She recalls the deep intensity of anger from that man's voice. Certainly, he must have a reason for his hatred against all State Alchemists like Edward, and whatever trauma he had endured, it led to a purpose of spilling the blood from those who most likely were responsible for his great suffering in the past. Whether they have a connection to him or not, so long as they hold up the title as State Alchemist, they are damned in his eyes.

If only it was simple to sway his mind, but he was set on his path. There's no rescuing him from his wrath unless he understands that the bloody way he paves will solve nothing. On top of that, she has no knowledge of what could have instigated his journey of vengeance, so there's no way to tell what would be best to help him. She can only pray for him, and act to oppose him if they were to ever meet again.

Taking only one step back, a sudden reaction overtook her as if a rug was pulled from under her feet.

"Huh? Whoa!" Edward caught Jeanne by the arms. Her drop was like her knees became metal and the ground was the magnet. Her shoulders slumped as a wave of exhaustion finally overcame her, and her form sways. Despite the fatigue, she remains conscious, albeit blinking quite a bit.

"Ah...It seems I am almost at my limit," She said. Nearly an entire night Jeanne had walked around the city, had not received any food or rest during her interrogation, and it appears the excessive activity of deflecting Archer's arrows, combating with Lancer, and persevering from Assassin's Noble Phantasm pushed the body of Rose at it's limit. How terribly inconvenient for a Servant, it's with good fortune that the battle is over.

"I'm sorry, I need a moment to recover."

A moment of contemplation, and then the Alchemist moves. Bringing Jeanne's arm over his shoulder, Edward helps her to her stand, "Can you walk?"

Her surprise at his actions subsiding, she answered with a frown, "I think so, I just..."

To invigorate her systems, Jeanne slaps her cheek, and immediately regretted doing so. She was gifted with a sense of enthusiasm for her body to keep going, but the price for this was a stinging pain.

Edward blinked at her, a look that says he had witnessed something fairly stupid, and Jeanne felt nothing but embarrassed.

"...Come on," The Alchemist started walking, and the girl follows along. He proceeded gently for her to catch up, and Jeanne thanked him for this.

That was the only exchange they conveyed with each other for the majority walk back to Eastern Command. The silence between them gnawingly awkward, and Jeanne reasonably believes Edward to be carrying a mountain of questions, but is withholding them at the moment. He must still be recovering from the awe of the Servants battle.

Hopefully, what he had just seen would only push him away from any potential interest of the war, it was what Jeanne fears since this boy and his brother are looking for a way to restore their bodies. Not to say that she would stop them from pursuing that goal, it just cannot be this way, for if they pursue this path, Edward could die - killed by an enemy Master or Servant, and Jeanne won't be able to protect him or it would be a violation of the Holy Grail War.

A Ruler Servant should not side with anyone, not even those whom they may hold some favor to. All must be judged equally, loved equally, and see to it that any wrong doing will face retribution by the power of this Servant class. But Edward is not an official Master, at least, not until the Overseer can confirm him to be so, and that is only if the Fullmetal Alchemist wishes to participate in the war. If he does not, then his Seals will have to be removed, and he can live on his life.

With his atheistic-like views, Jeanne hopes that he would react the same for the Holy Grail - the device that may have what it takes to grant Edward's desire… The Elric brothers must have searched for so long, and here she is, hoping that they will not take the one path that could grant them what they had been looking for. Not the Philosopher's Stone, but the means to undo what was done to them.

Guilt troubles her heart, impossible to deny what she knows to be the truth. The Holy Grail could indeed help the Elric brothers. If they asked her about the Grail and questions its omnipotence, if it has what it takes to help the brothers regain their original bodies, she would say yes. As oppose to the many wishes that only a miracle could grant, like the Regain of Immortality or True Reincarnation, the wish of the Elric brothers is a small thing, easy for the Grail to accomplish. This world may have rules different from the world she comes from, but Jeanne is certain that this forged miracle could give what these brothers have craved for.

But even so, she cannot encourage, nor recommend them to take this path. For as much as these brothers sought to restore their bodies, there are others who are willing to kill competitors to obtain the Holy Grail, even young boys like the Elrics. This path is filled with too many risks, and she is greatly concerned for the brothers safety.

Or perhaps, this is not Jeanne herself who felt this way.

Her fingers crept to where her heart is, _"You really cared for these brothers, don't you?"_

Like an echo, a voice that was not hers responded, _"I do."_

Rose had been a conscious companion since the time Jeanne left Liore, where the girl from France had slept during the train ride, and communicated with the girl from Liore whose body this belongs to. It was a tense beginning of their journey, Rose couldn't find a stronghold after the reveal of Cornello's deceit, and wouldn't even speak to Jeanne in anger and anguish. But after a day, Rose had slowly came to accept the horrible truth, and wept while Jeanne mentally comforted her.

Since that day, Rose had admired the Elric brothers, and her feelings merged with Jeanne. Although Jeanne ultimately remains dominant in control, there are some minor adjustments caused by Rose's influence.

When she saw Edward lying with a pierced heart, it was due to Rose that Jeanne felt the need to act. When she thought of Edward being in danger, it was Rose who instigated the drive to protect him. Grateful for the brother's act in Liore and hearing the Fullmetal Alchemist's deeds as the Hero of the People throughout their travel, Rose had forged a personal view of them. She was inspired by them. It led her to understand that if the Elrics who have suffered so much could still walk on afterwards, then so could she. Slowly coming to accept her tragic past, Rose had healed considerably, and she owe it to the brothers.

 _And I owe you my thanks just as much_ , Rose had told Jeanne. But the other girl humbly declined, for she is sure, she would have left Liore despite the suspicious act of Cornello with the concern of the Holy Grail War anomaly set in her mind, and emphasizes that it is the Elric brothers whom she should give thanks to.

Perhaps this was the true reason for Jeanne's attachment to the brothers. It was Rose who grew to like them, and because they meant so much to the girl because of what they were able to help with, Jeanne would act to defend them for Rose's sake, even though they have not once directly spoke to the girl from Liore, and vice versa.

 _"You also care about them,"_ Rose said. Having shared the same body, mind, and feelings for a while now, she could tell that the brothers have made just as much of a lasting impression to the Holy Maiden.

Jeanne did not deny this, and expresses so.

"...What are you smiling about?" Edward saw her face with a raised brow. Jeanne remembered herself and shook her head.

"Oh, it's nothing," she said. There was no convincement in the boy's eyes, but he did not push for any explanation. He was still rattling his brain with everything that happened as of now.

Ever since the moment Edward had been stabbed in the heart by that Lancer, the foundation of the world he knew started crumbling one shake at a time. He knew better than to actually believe every word this strange girl had told him...but maybe there were a few truths to her story that can't be discarded.

Something abnormal is definitely going on. He has a mind to ask Jeanne for more details, since she's completely in belief to whatever the hell is happening, but right now he should get her somewhere to rest. Recalling the moment of Jeanne's injury, he looks at her.

"Are you still hurting?" Edward asked. He had seen the blood, though she still fought on. _What a tough girl_ , thought the Fullmetal Alchemist.

"No, I should be healed by now."

He frowns, "With what?" He didn't see her patch herself up.

"Magecraft."

Ah, the supposed 'not-Alchemy.' Edward is quite sure that this Magecraft is just another term for Alchemy used by some estranged group decidedly separate from the rest of society, and who are convinced that Magic exists. Definitely possible.

"But, this is something more...automatic, then it is done willfully..." Jeanne continues, trying to fill in the void of their silence with some meager chance of a conversation, but grimaced at the futility, as well her vague explanation. "I'm sorry, this probably doesn't make much sense."

Very much, yet Edward responded after a pause, "Would this have to do with you calling yourself a Servant?"

Jeanne looked at him, and found his frown still in place.

Of course, with what she had revealed Servants to be, he would not only be skeptical, but he appears to be the type that would first disprove of whatever claims that he knows from experience to be utterly impossible if not ridiculous, out of personal experience, and something akin to nihilism morphed with the self-confidence to challenge this.

 _What a headstrong boy_ , thought the Holy Maiden.

When they at last reached to Eastern Command, soldiers were all around the entrance, moving with haste. Edward thought of Scar, the man who had chased him and his brother, and his greatest concern arrived at the thought of his brother.

"Fullmetal!"

They heard, and saw the team of Roy Mustang approached hurriedly to Edward and Jeanne. "What happened? We saw smoke coming from where you two left," Roy said.

After a moment, Edward answered, "We were running when all of a sudden, Jeanne was attacked," he looks to her, and that was Jeanne's cue to reveal.

"They were Servants," she stated.

Roy and Riza recoiled in shock. Havoc and Breda shared a confused look, unaware of what their superiors know.

"There is a chance that these must be the Rogue Faction your Fuhrer has told me," Jeanne continues, "And they were after me with reasons that I can only assume, but most certainly, they intend to prevent me from discovering something."

A question nearly left Roy about what happened with these Servants, but stopped short when a prominent feature caught his eye, "Fullmetal...your hand."

All eyes were on his backhand that carries the Command Seals, Edward also glanced at it in acknowledgement, "...Yeah. I guess there was something with what Jeanne said at the station."

"You mean..." The colonel's eyes widening.

"Well now, you certainly have been quite popular as of late, Mr. Elric."

The voice of King Bradley and his arrival instantly had every soldier saluting his presence, apart from Edward, "And once again, you have managed to survive. I'm sure you would wish to see your brother soon."

Turning to the Eastern Soldiers, he orders, "Take the Fullmetal Alchemist for medical attention."

"Yes sir!"

Edward ushers the others to check on Jeanne with equal amount of assistance, but the girl shook her head, and removed her arm from his support, "I'm fine now. Go and see Alphonse."

The boy hesitated, no matter what Alchemy the girl used, she should still have herself evaluated. Not to mention, if he leaves her here, she'll be with the Fuhrer, and the young State Alchemist has a reasonable assumption that this is intentional. Roy calls for him, possibly sharing the same thoughts as Edward, but he intended to speak with him on other matters. The Fullmetal Alchemist lingered for another few seconds before stating to Jeanne that he will be back and leaves. Right now, he has to see his brother.

"This is quite a surprise," Bradley said once they were at a certain vicinity away from others. His guards were not too far, but they were out of ear-shot, so the Fuhrer has no need to speak secretly to Jeanne, and neither should she. "I was hoping that the Fullmetal Alchemist will not be put any deeper into this matter, but it seems something else has different plans for him."

The Holy Grail, the one responsible for gifting Edward the Command Seals.

"The Fullmetal Alchemist is a talented individual," Bradley continues, "but regardless of his skills, it wouldn't be ideal for his involvement in this war. Though it has its convenience, and he is a soldier, it would be better that someone with greater experience were to handle this."

A reasonable excuse, but he was withholding information, the true reason for desiring the aversion of the Fullmetal Alchemist's involvement.

"Has Mr. Elric said anything of interest to the situation he is placed in?"

Jeanne considers for a moment, "...He hasn't. He may be trying to comprehend still, but I don't think he's convinced that the prize of the war's outcome is as it's promised to be."

Bradley hummed, "I suppose whatever his decision may be, he will have to be heavily guarded. I will have to personally set up the security measure."

"…If that is what you wish to do, then that is for the best," Jeanne said, "However, I have already taken liberty to watch over the Fullmetal Alchemist."

A hint of surprise flashed in the Fuhrer's eyes.

"He is a new Master, and so he must see to the Overseer in your city and handle the proceedings. He may decide to have his Command Seals revoked, and be out of the competition this way. As Ruler, it is within my power to ensure the rules and regulations are met accordingly, and as he is at best an amateur who still does not understand the Holy Grail War, I will have to personally guide him."

It may be better to take him to the Church in this city, and let a man of the cloth aware of the Holy Grail War to deliver the Seals to the Overseer, or better yet, do it herself, but the problem was that Edward had been recognized by the Servants they've crossed paths with as a Master. He needs protection, and clarification of his standing by the Overseer himself, and there is no telling where Edward will go to have his automail repaired.

Jeanne must be by his side if he is to have anyone confirm his refusal as Master - if that will be the case. In addition, Alphonse seems to always be in Edward's company, so he will be involved in this war as much as his older brother.

Bradley contemplated the girl before him, a girl who was shorter than him, and quite meek in terms of who has a more sturdy presence, but Jeanne did not feel the least bit intimidated by Bradley, nor felt any more sure with her words.

"…If you would be willing to guide Edward, then I don't see the need for any extra men on my part. However, I would recommend the officers in this district to have at least one competent soldier guarding Edward."

Jeanne nods in agreement.

"There's not much to consider then, I'll be trusting you with the military's prodigy."

Such a statement would rattle anyone as this was the Fuhrer himself who is proclaiming his trust, but Jeanne merely stated without thoughtlessness or arrogance. Her affirmation carries the absolute understanding to this responsibility, and is prepared to carry it out. "Of course."

With a nod, Bradley's heels turned and he began to walk, "I'll send instructions to East Command concerning the war, but I've already overstayed my time here. I should head back to Central now, as I'm sure you can understand, the Holy Grail War is putting up quite a busy schedule for me."

Holding up a friendly disposition, he smiles.

"We may meet again in Central City, until then young lady." With a wave of his hand, Bradley departs with his men follows behind.

Watching his leaving form, Jeanne takes the time to rethink her decided plan of action before nodding to herself in total acceptance. She will have to watch over the Elric brothers until they meet with the Overseer. To guard the unproclaim Master as of now, not solely out of duty as Ruler, but because she has made a promise to do so. _These brothers are under my protection_ were her words to Scar. It is her philosophy to keep her word. Furthermore, she will do this for Rose, whose heart goes out for the Elrics.

Until Edward acts to register for the Holy Grail War, or relent the Seals to the Overseer, Jeanne will uphold her effort to protect the Elric brothers.

The streaks of sunshine pierces through the parting clouds, and the rain finally ceased.

* * *

The Fullmetal Alchemist's attempt to see his brother takes a detour meeting with an available doctor at their station, despite his insistence that he was fine. During this time as Riza and the other two soldiers: Havoc and Breda stood aside, Roy proceeded to ask what in the world happened with him and Jeanne, leading the boy to explain everything he could tell by memory, including the moment when Assassin utilizes his incomprehensible power and the appearance of another girl in black armor.

As suspected, Roy could hardly believe it, but openly confesses his willingness to take his word for it, "It's been very hectic recently, and with all the things your new friend had told us that even the Fuhrer knows about, I'll take whatever you got."

"Mind telling us what this is about?" Havoc spoke up, "Just what are these Servants?"

Riza informs them, "They're a group of powerful warriors that's apparently been making a commotion throughout the country. One of them was responsible for injuring Ed last night."

"That's not the only thing we've been told, we'll tell more when we have the rest of you with us," said Roy, he will indeed have to involve his entire team if he wishes to explain this amazing matter. His sight lays upon the red marks, "I still don't understand how, but if what Jeanne said is true about those marks..."

Edward looks at the Command Seals, "Yeah, but she also said that I can choose to get rid of these, something about taking me to an Overseer?"

Hearing that, Roy seems to relaxed slightly, "Well, that's good to hear. This whole thing may be too out of your league, Fullmetal," his eyes narrowed, "I'm sure you're curious about this _Holy Grail_ , but if it means to involve yourself in a war like this, then it's too risky. If these Servants really are something...not normal, then I'd say you had enough with meeting just one."

He emphasized his point by actually pointing at Edward's chest wound.

"On top of the fact that we have neither of your attackers in custody, and that you or your brother are in no condition to protect yourself, you'll have to lay low. Until you've recovered, you're off-duty for the time being, Fullmetal."

It was a command ushered by a superior officer, and it was said in a way that will not take no from Edward.

Apart from his annoyance by the order, the mention of the Holy Grail pulls Edward into deep contemplation. _A wish-granting device..._ He wonders how in the world does that work, unless there was something more reasonable to it.

He felt his shoulder pressed, looking up, he finds Riza gently grasping it, "Ed, we don't have any information on this Grail except by word, so we can't be too sure just how genuine it is. Let us look into this."

"...Right," Edward said. He smirks, "Even when I was a kid, I never believed in something like wishing at a shooting star and expect something to happen."

It wouldn't be so strange in the eyes of Eastern Command for a child to have such beliefs, but this was Edward, he was simply too mature for such childish nonsense, and these were his views before the mistake.

Once Edward's evaluation by the doctor concluded, the Eastern soldiers guided the boy to where Alphonse hid. Not a lot of people in this station were aware of the younger brother's…condition. They decided it best to move him at a warehouse. It was a simple matter that Edward cannot wait to hear his brother's reaction to everything that's happened him.

"By the way, what happened with the reinforcement I sent?"

Roy's question confused Edward, "You sent reinforcement? We never met any."

The colonel nearly stopped in his tracks, "What?"

"There wasn't a single soldier that came our way, not even on our way back to Eastern Command."

They never met the group of soldiers Roy had called for? But they should have. He had received confirmation that help would be sent to where he determined Edward and Jeanne to be. How could none have arrived?

"...Colonel?" Edward asked him when he saw the look of the Flame Alchemist.

"…Never mind. We're here anyway." He introduced the young State Alchemist to the warehouse, "Just head on inside, and you'll find Alphonse."

Edward raised a brow at the colonel's strange behavior, but decided to put it aside in favor to see his brother. He wasted no time entering the warehouse. As Havoc and Breda follows behind, Roy continues his thoughts over the soldiers he requested strange lack of arrival. If none have went and no one has told him why, it could only mean that someone of greater authority has called them off.

His mind only came to one man.

"…What are you thinking about, colonel?" Riza asked him.

Gazing at the clearing sky, Roy answered, "Just wondering the kind of people that might be involved in this Holy Grail War."

* * *

The train begun its ride to Central City. King Bradley sat in cushion chair within a private cart. His hands grips the top of his cane-like sword's handle, the weapon sheathed and its tip against the floor of the room. His eyes closed in concentration, filing all the noticeable inquiries of his meeting with the Ruler of the Fifth Holy Grail War.

It was interesting to say the least. The girl name Jeanne had been careful with her words, but he could tell that she has her distrust against him. Either because of a **Personal Skill** she has, or that she is a naturally perceptive person in her life. In the end, he managed to confirm her existence, and now waits to relay what he has gathered to his associates and superior.

There was a knock on the door, he calls for their entrance and the person did. Someone who can be considered a subordinate, but that would be an insult if ever reached by this individual's ear, and Bradley has not once thought of this person as such.

No, it would be below degrading, considering the position this 'personal bodyguard' of his had been in life.

Taking a seat beside Bradley, the Fuhrer had already conducted a drink with small glass cups for the two of them. Once served, the Fuhrer questions in a tone the defines their long time cooperation, similar to acquaintanceship.

"How was your battle, Saber?"

Accepting the glass poured with adequate alcohol, the Dark King of Knights, in her black military-like uniform, answered, "Lancer had proved himself to be skillful, before turning to cowardice as he runs from me. Assassin was hardly any of equal interest, I could have easily taken his head had I focus my attention solely on him."

She was simple in beauty, a pale complexion with abnormal eye color of yellow, and her silky hair a similar tone as her diminished glory. She appeared young by at least fifteen years of age, but she had lived longer than that. She was a king who had abandoned her humanity for the sake of her ideals, for the peace her people could cherish in, and in the end, she was feared and betrayed.

There once was a king who uphold her sense of justice above all, and that was precisely why her people feared this inhumanity. She was a machine in their eyes, a ruler who could not reach them through emotions, and so they rejected her. The true king Arthur is unlike the Saber of King Bradley, but this form was her decision; if all choose to fear her, then fear shall be how she will uphold. If she is to be a weapon, then may she be something that will cut down any in her path.

The ways of a king is not without sacrifice, and that is the path this knight has taken. To rule with an iron fist, undoubtedly like a tyrant. She still held her values as a knight, and her wish remains the same as it would if she were in another form, but the legend of Arthur Pendragon is now smeared in blood.

"So neither proved much worth to your blade," Bradley said as he sips from his glass.

"Lancer has been somewhat capable, and for his cunningness, he is impressive. I would like to fight him again without any ants in our way." Saber had received a wound from spearman, but in thanks to Bradley's newly gained ability from a training in the way of a Magus he had overcome a few years ago, he had healed her at her request, without ever having to be this near. "But he is no more than another stepping stone for me to walk on."

Bradley nods to her truthfully cold words.

"Additionally, I've managed to take note of his skills that could bring down the list of heroes he may represent."

"Such as?"

Saber starts, "His mole. I knew it to be some type of enchantment. With my high resistance to magic, it was nothing to me, but I was able to tell that it would affect the better judgment of those who looks upon it. Then there was the weapon he used. A red spear that could pierce through magic barriers or mana in general, like my armor."

Bradley mentally takes note, "Have you any clue to who he could be?"

"Possibly," Saber said, "I know a story of one man from Ireland who wielded two spears, and had an enchanted mole. If his second spear is what I believe it to be, the spear that prevents any wounds it inflicts from healing, then he could be this warrior."

"And the others?"

She shook her head, "I don't know. Though I'm sure _he_ is able to gather something from fighting Archer."

And in speaking of this man, he appears in a shroud of darkness beside Bradley. A white mask designed like that of a skull hiding his face. Cloaked in a black fabric of torn edges. He knelt before Bradley and spoke, "Master."

This calling would have been odd for typical Masters, for surely with the way Saber and Bradley spoke to one another, that _she_ was the Fuhrer's Servant.

"Report, Assassin," Bradley orders.

"I've followed the three Servants until they've proved too quick, and I lost trail once Archer perceived my position correctly."

"Are you harmed?"

Assassin unveils the arm he hides, "I was able to defend myself in time." Wrapped in black wrappings all the way to his shoulder, his arm that bears a burn mark looked like it could be swung as a bludgeoning weapon, and compare to his other arm, this limb seems far too wide by few inches, yet it appears practically useless as the wrappings prevents any actual movements from this arm. However, should it be unconcealed, his great power igniting a great assassination will be utilize. In other words, his **Noble Phantasm**.

Assassin continues, "As for Archer, I could not inflict a deep enough wound. He possesses a sturdy flesh, as well does he have some form of foresight akin to **Clairvoyance** , which may explain how he was able to pinpoint me despite my presence concealed."

"Their own Assassin has no trouble fighting upfront, which makes it clear that he is no ordinary killer who strikes from the shadows, if one at all," Saber informs. "Be that as it may, he is no warrior, and will be the easiest out of the rest."

Accepting everything the Servants have said, Bradley expresses the merits of knowing this much, "Then it seems our main concerns lies with Lancer and Archer. I'm sure my superior will be as pleased to hear this much about our competitors."

The truth of the military stinks with deception, crafted by a sole antagonist who seeks to accomplish a dangerous goal. Hidden from public knowledge, and the man whom the Fuhrer works for. Yet, what has been forged through long years of careful planning is under threat by another player in the field, with this country the main setting. King Bradley, the face of Amestris, a pawn in another man's ploy, found it satisfying enough with Jeanne's contribution to ensure that the Fullmetal Alchemist will be dissuaded of any interest he may have for the Holy Grail War. Edward Elric is an important piece for his superior to use, the boy's death due to involving himself in this war would hinder the plan that has been in active since the start of this country's formation.

When Assassin had first told Bradley the presence of other Servants within East City, and that Ruler was under attacked, the Fuhrer ordered his two Servants to act. Bradley had intersected Roy Mustang's request for assistance aimed to reach where the Fullmetal Alchemist and Ruler were at. He knew that no soldier would have any chance against Heroic Spirits with powers beyond imaginations, known only in legends that can be recognized as fairytales.

Even with proper knowledge and preparation, to win against one Servant would have to be luck at best. Bradley is no ordinary human, but he understood that he could hardly stand a chance against Servants like those he has met. Perhaps through careful means while carrying the element of surprise, but to fight head-on without consideration is only a fool's doing.

The amount of Servants roaming within the country is what brought the idea that they needed the Ruler Servant that is Jeanne. Ruler would hold the Command Seals of every Servant combating in this war, such powers could only be seen as useful in his superior's eyes. Neither she nor the Fullmetal Alchemist must die if it can be helped.

If Edward Elric does decide to keep the Seals for whatever personal interest he has...well, they will just have to be taken by force. So long as the boy does not summon his Servant, then there would be no problems other than the obstacle Ruler herself may become if her distinct response for the Fullmetal Alchemist's well being is anything to go by. Either way, his superior will gain new Command Seals, and the _man in white_ is always more than happy to bring forth more of these Heroes.

"What of that boy and Ruler?" Saber questions.

"Ruler will be accompanying Edward until they've reached Central City, so she has said. However, the Fullmetal Alchemist will have to go through recovery. The time it takes to repair his automail will be extensive," Bradley answers. "Ruler believes that the boy should have no interest in the Grail."

"And if he does?" There was an undertone of suspecting a potential enemy in Saber's question.

"We will have to take his Seals," stated Bradley without hesitation, "But let's not make any unnecessary confrontation. To have you attack the Fullmetal Alchemist with Ruler present could shine a bad light on us, and he is needed to be kept alive."

"Shall I keep an eye on Ruler and that boy?" Assassin offers.

"There is another matter that requires your skills, Assassin," Bradley said. For certain though, when he arrives to Central, he will suggest to have a familiar be sent to spy on the Elrics and Ruler by one of their operatives, or task it to another hidden onlooker if they are available, "You are to investigate a possible hideout of the enemy group. Needless to say, precaution is advised. Avoid any confrontation if possible."

"Understood."

The Fuhrer of Amestris then spoke further details of Assassin's mission, and afterwards, Assassin leaves. For the rest of the ride, he made small talks with Saber while also discussing strategies for any future battles that is to come. These Heroic Spirits certainly have shown their usefulness and prowess - they could multiply the forces of the military by over a dozen at least, while remaining anonymous to others of their true nature.

Indeed, had this war never came to light nearly a decade prior, Bradley and those he works with, would have been caught in an uncontrollable storm, to which even the man referred to as _Father_ would not be able to handle.

* * *

...How in the world did it come to this?

Trapped between a hard place and the elbow of his guard, the Fullmetal Alchemist travels by train to visit a place he has not seen in a while. To get his automail repaired, he must meet with the one person who had a part in creating this substitute limb. Someone who lives in the country side of Amestris near East City. To see his mechanic, he had to return to Resembool.

The beginning and end of his childhood, what led to the Elric Brothers journey, it all started there. The place of happiness, loss, pain and regrets. Where he had made his mistake. Where the brothers original home lies in ashes, burying the results of their sins.

Aside from seeing his mechanic, it probably would have been a more somber visit if not for his assigned guard who has a habit of being...well, himself - expressive and occasionally stripping to show off his muscles. _Why the hell did they have to assign this guy as my bodyguard?_ Edward wonders. Not that Edward didn't understand this decision, since the boy is practically out of commission at the moment and not only could Scar come after him again, but the new threat that are the Servants as well. Still, of all people, it had to be Major Alex Louise Armstrong?

When Edward vocalized his lack of enthusiasm to be looked after as if he were a child, Hughes shushed him, and said that it was for his own good, all while glowering at him which actually caused the boy to shudder. The family man was definitely not happy with him or his brother for their brash actions. The Fullmetal Alchemist was sure he would have gone deaf after Hughes' scold.

So, here they were. Alphonse was also in the train, but with the truth of his condition obvious for anyone to see, he had to hide onboard. Armstrong had him stationed somewhere, a place he promised his brother won't ever be lonely. The Major was apparently inspired at the mention of Alphonse' love for animal, so he thought it fitting to hide him within a cart full of sheep. Edward gave the bigger man a deadpanned glare when he heard this.

And coming along this trip was none other than the girl with blonde hair and pink bangs, his second bodyguard. The girl who is involved in what Edward can best describe to be incredibly farfetched, yet the marks on his backhand tells him otherwise. She who carries a titular title, but has a name anyone may refer her as.

"Jeanne, was it?" Armstrong addresses the girl who sat in front of them. She confirmed. "Tell me, how do you train yourself? I was surprised to see the amount of strength you had when fighting against Scar. It didn't even looked like you've lost much stamina."

"Well, I'm not sure how I can explain this…" Jeanne said. A Servant's strength can be magnificent, one that is understandably hard to believe.

"Ah, this has something to do with your position, yes?"

To ensure this conversation would be confidential, Armstrong leans forward, very forward. Jeanne had to retract deep into her seat when he came too unnecessarily close. While there is reason for Armstrong to be an intimidating figure simply by the look of his stature, the Holy Maiden had come to know the big heart existing beneath this man's chest. Still, he was quite overwhelming.

"Colonel Mustang informed me as much as he could," he whispered with a hand beside his mouth, even though his moustache would be enough to conceal his lips from any curious mouth-readers nearby, "I understand that it is by the Fuhrer's orders to keep your position anonymous."

Jeanne nodded, the back of her head rubbed against the headrest of her seat, "Yes, that's right. I will say this though, I have dealt with some labor for my family."

She caught Edward's curiosity. His eyes were focused through the window and watches the passing scenery without a target, but he listens in on the potential telling of this girl's backstory, one that may differ from the story he was told of Rose.

"Oh? Where are you from?" Armstrong questions.

"I was not born here in Amestris, but I was raised in a rural area. Working on the field and other chores was a daily life for me, and I rather enjoyed doing them," she revealed a faint look of reminiscence, fond memories of her home.

"You are going to like Resembool then. It's the country-side of Amestris, and it is where Edward is from."

Jeanne's brows rose in surprise, "Really?"

Taking a second before answering, Edward nods, "Yeah, Al and I grew up there."

"Oh. Well that's good. It must be nice to return home," the girl said sincerely.

Yet, the subtle frown, and distant look upon Edward had her reconsider her words, until she realized.

"U-Unless, that was where…"

The Fullmetal Alchemist's expression creases solemnly.

Remembering Alphonse telling the story of their tragic past, common sense takes its curtsy to tell Jeanne that surely, they must have done the taboo there, where they had hoped to reunite with their smiling mother. What should be a place of belonging, warmth, and joy. Instead, their home is filled with painful memories.

How utterly saddening.

She bowed her head apologetically, "I'm sorry, Edward." How could she be so forgetful? How insensitive of her. Not even daring to search for his eyes, she remains this way in shame of herself.

"...You can just call me Ed."

She looks up, tentatively and unsurely. It was actually amazing for the Fullmetal Alchemist to see. A total inversion of how she was in Liore, against Scar, and those Servants. She is a gentle girl it seems.

"It's what everyone calls me, I don't mind," he shrugs, meeting her gaze. The emotions he had unveiled subsides, and in place, he shows no mind to Jeanne's apparent thoughtlessness, which he didn't think she was being at all. It was only a matter of fact.

She blinked, and tested this shorten name of his, "Ed...Alright. If that really is alright," It was not only a name simplified, but a symbolism to the start of their familiarity with one another. Smiling, the girl felt relieved that she did not bring any discomfort to the Fullmetal Alchemist.

But then his frown returns, deeper than before. Edward leans forward, similar to what Armstrong have done except not closing the distance that separates a few feet between him and Jeanne, he wasn't tall enough for that - it would be best not to say that out loud.

"Jeanne, I want to ask you about the war."

The girl heard his investigative tone, there was indeed something he wants to know immensely, she can only imagine what and it might be just _that_. She looks around them first, the other passengers were somewhat far away, but it would be safer to whisper. Copying Edward's manner, she responds quietly, "What do you wish to know?"

He says nothing for a moment, pondering before finally asking, "What can you tell me about the Holy Grail?"

The one thing Jeanne had fret for, but she knew this was an inevitable question. An object that could be what these brothers have been seeking. It was only a matter of time for Edward to take this inquisitively. As Ruler, for a Master such as Edward, she is obligated to answer whatever questions there is concerning the Holy Grail War.

Although she cannot say too much in public, and with Armstrong here who may have not yet comprehended the scale of this war - such as the Grail's incredible capability to pull Servants from another dimension into this world, and that they were reincarnated warriors, she will answer only the basics. Armstrong listens in, while Mustang and Hawkeye were able to relay only what they could in a short amount of time - a war for a supposed wish that could bypass Alchemy, he was curious to know more.

"...As I have explained before, the Holy Grail is a wish-granting device. Capable to accomplish miracles. It was forged by three families of Magi roughly around 200 years ago. At least, this is the information I've received."

The Holy Grail is a clump of energy, she said, a vast amount able to overcome the laws of Alchemy and Magecraft, and casting whatever desire to the sole winner of this war. How it obtains the sufficient energy enough for its activation is through the intake of Prana from the death of Servants. Originally, seven Servants are to be summoned, and six Servants is all that the Grail requires for it's appearance. Though the location of where this Grail will form varies, once the war comes to a climax, Jeanne will receive a "signal" within herself, and her **Revelation** will lead her to where the Grail will appear.

However, due to the abnormal expansion of the Master and Servant Roster, the Holy Grail will be accepting more deaths, and it cannot appear until one pair of Master and Servant remains, or at least, she thinks so. It's possible it could take form once it receives a multitude of Servants while only a handful remains, but this is uncertain to her, and what happens beyond that is worrying.

She began detailing more on the Grail's makings to the best she can relay from the knowledge she was bestowed upon summoning. Edward made no comments other than a few questions for specifications, and a few from Armstrong. Once she was done, the young Alchemist rested his back against his seat, his arms crossed.

"Amazing..." Armstrong confesses. The Fullmetal Alchemist seems to bore a different reaction, his face devoid of any hint to what his thoughts are.

"...Miracles, huh?" He said.

Jeanne held her breath, her heart thumping with trepidation. Is he…interested? If so, then even if she explains that this war could mean his death, if his mind is set to it despite his lack of a Magus training, she has a feeling that nothing she says will move him. Respecting his decision would be one thing to do, but she prepares herself to argue with him since he does not have the means to support a Servant. But if he is firm with his decision despite her warnings, then there's little she can do.

She held her breath as she listens for his answer.

"…Sounds like a total scam," Edward rested his chin against his palm, looking back out the window. "In this world, miracles don't come by often, if they exist at all." He had said so to Alphonse when he met him at the warehouse and revealed everything that happened after running from Scar. As expected, Alphonse was stunned by Edward's show of Command Seals on his backhand and the description of the abnormal Alchemy one of these Servants used. Once they came to the topic about the Holy Grail, though Alphonse was quite mixed with hope and uncertainty, they came to an agreement with nearly equal reasoning.

For the claims of these warriors to actually be reincarnated heroes from another world, Edward hasn't been convinced. Even with their proof of strength, there were plenty of other logical explanations. Though some things were hanging in the balance of what's logical and what's unknown - the red marks on his backhand for example, once Edward hears the word "Miracles," he is immediately suspicious. What happened with Cornello was only the few instances of pure hope later revealed to be false promises.

As he has seen, there are many people involved, thus confirming the sincerity of their desire for this Miracle, but who among these competitors have genuine proof of the Holy Grail's existence? It's easy for something to start off as mundane with metaphorical properties, and then be molded into something magnificent through years of fabrications and exaggerations, even the Philosopher's Stone is not exempt from this.

However, unlike the stone that can be possibly achieved through scientific means and that there were records dictating the existence of this item, even if this Holy Grail is real, to call it a "Wish-Granting Device" that doesn't just ignore Equivalent Exchange, but with Jeanne's description of its capabilities, it made the young Alchemist raise an eyebrow skeptically. Can such a thing like this Grail bring about the End of all Conflicts? That's not science, that's a fantasy.

Now if this Grail was just another name for the Philosopher's Stone, then he might consider, but by any means, he will not play along this sick game of killing as if it was a sport, especially at the mention of sacrifices for the Grail, and most especially, the summoning of these Servants. Beside his absolute faith that this claim is nothing but preposterous, he's sure as hell won't test it after what he's been through. Even if these Servants aren't human, letting them kill or be killed disgusted him. It was like the doing of a mad cult, and the Elric brothers had constantly met those types of groups throughout the time of their career.

Edward won't let himself or his brother be involved in this barbaric event, and he just hopes that the military will put an end to this soon.

"Even if the Holy Grail could do that much, I wouldn't want to touch something covered in blood," he concludes. The Holy Grail could be what the brothers were looking for, but they would never reach out for something that demands casualties.

Jeanne was actually quite stunned, and found some appeasement. While his nihilistic views did prompt the urge to rebuke beating within her, she was at least glad that he spoke his decision to stay out of this war. He also spoke the fact. This matter is indeed very brutal, it's understood that someone like a Magus would find this war an opportunity of a lifetime, while someone like Edward would bravely call this out as it is.

It surprised her really, but as the Holy Grail War is a matter beyond science, then that would be enough for him to roll his eyes and carry on his way. With that, she is satisfied.

"Which is what I don't understand about you," Edward continues, looking at Jeanne, "How can you be okay with this? How are you even involved?"

"I've been chosen to look after the war. Normally, the Church is responsible for mediation, but if the circumstances are out of their control, then someone like me has to step in," She answered as she unconsciously settles further into her seat, the lids of her eyes grew heavy at every second. "It is within my duty that I have to ensure the war does not overstep it's boundaries."

She felt a yawn coming and puts up her hand, releasing a breath of her exhaustion to her palm.

Edward wanted to ask another question, but Armstrong caught on to Jeanne's increasing tiredness, and so spoke, "You best get some sleep. Our destination will be hours away."

The mention of rest sets aside whatever question Edward had, and he adjusts his seating, "Sounds like a plan," he slumped into his chair and closed his eyes.

Jeanne agrees, also moving herself to be in a comfortable position. Closing her eyes, she drifted to sleep in almost an instant.

* * *

Her dream was spent associating with her travelling companion, Rose. Their talk mostly circulated what had transpired the last few days, and occasionally, Rose brought up the Elric brothers, even prompted Jeanne to tell what she thinks of them. It took a moment for the Holy Maiden to gather her thoughts concerning Edward and Alphonse.

After leaving Liore, she has heard stories about the Fullmetal Alchemist, quite different for how he really was in person. Back in Liore, he boasted intelligence, a prideful individual, and is rather quick to throw the first punch. However, despite his rough exterior, he did show some aspect that mirrored the actual kindness he possessed. While his views does tap against hers like the meeting of blades, she was patient with him, and responded with no disdain or the impulsiveness to oppose him.

As for his younger brother, Alphonse is openly kind, gentle, and quite mature like his brother. But while Edward seems to be the type that would arouse trouble out of temper or the drive to accept a challenge, Alphonse acts much more controlled, perhaps the leash for his older brother. Certainly, the melancholy that could exist within his armor will not be unheard once he reveals only a hint of it if vocalizing his deep thoughts, especially after she has heard his backstory.

Over all, the brothers have been an interesting brave pair.

The girls conversation continues, and then abruptly, Jeanne was awoke by the noise of fussing individuals.

"Gah! Major! What the hell are you doing?!"

"Dr. Marcoh! Is that you?!"

Edward, who awoke by the sudden push and heaviness to his side, was pressed against the glass by the body of Armstrong whose head is out through the open window. Jeanne rapidly regained her diligence, wondering what was happening, and noticed that the train had stopped at a station. They were not in Resembool yet, this is the halfway point, a station that also has a village.

"It's me! Alex Louise Armstrong!"

Jeanne looks out the window, and only caught sight the back of a man running into the village.

"Strange. I was sure that was him," the Strong-Arm Alchemists steps back, freeing Edward to grasp the air into his lungs. When he had his face against the glass window, the young Alchemist caught sight of the man Armstrong had called to.

"Friend of yours?"

"He's a talented State Alchemist from Central," responded Armstrong, "His research centers around the medical field. He was on a confidential assignment when he suddenly disappeared after the Ishvalan war. He was never seen or heard from again."

Rubbing his cheeks, Edward dawns a thought, "Medical field?"

"Yes. One of our best actually."

The Fullmetal Alchemist's eyes glittered with an idea, and he left his seat.

"Ed?" Jeanne watched him go and quickly stands up to follow. She wobbled slightly, her body adjusting to her command to move, but it was with great gratitude that she was able to get some rest. With this some bit of energy, she moves along with Armstrong.

The Strong-Arm Alchemist called out, "Ed! Where are you going?"

"To see your friend! A guy like that has got to know a thing or two about bio-alchemy! Major! Go get Al!"

Confused, Jeanne looks to Armstrong and questioned. The Strong-Arm Alchemist answered, "I'm not entirely sure, but I would like to see Dr. Marcoh as well. It's been so long since the war, I had thought he died and was just never found. Let's go, Jeanne!"

Following after the larger man, Jeanne could only think that, perhaps, she should do well to ensure neither Alchemists will make too much of a commotion for their sake.

"Excuse me, have you seen this man around?" Approaching two villagers, Armstrong held up a drawing quickly done by him. Edward and Jeanne stood behind, one of them quite eager to hear whatever information he can obtain, and beside them was the crate which Alphonse hides. He was quickly informed of what was happening by his brother which Jeanne had missed, so she still hasn't grasped just what is going on in the mind of the Fullmetal Alchemist.

The villager evaluates the drawing, and recognition struck, "That looks like Dr. Mauro."

"Mauro?" Armstrong raises an eyebrow. That name can't be right, he was one-hundred percent certain that the man he saw was Marcoh. But the villagers were just as confident to say that his name was otherwise.

"The doctors we had here were all drafted for the civil war. After the war ended, Dr. Mauro came to our village, and he's been helping us ever since. He's a lifesaver!" The villager announced his gratitude.

His friend nodded, "He'll take in any patient with hardly much repayment, and never gives up on any of them. We're really lucky to have him here. I've never seen an Alchemist so efficient as he."

"I see…" Brows furrowed slightly, Armstrong questions once more, "Where may we find him?"

Though the villagers were wary of strangers, revealing their protectiveness over their one and only doctor, they saw Edward's condition underneath his brown coat and gladly led them to Dr. Mauro's clinic and home. The three walked up the stairs, a door just ahead of them. Armstrong carries on his back the crate Alphonse is within, hardly deterred by the weight.

"Ed, what are you planning to do?" Jeanne inquires.

He glanced at her briefly, "If a man like this guy knows his stuff, he may know something about what I'm looking for."

"Ah! You mean…"

The Philosopher's Stone.

The Fullmetal Alchemist may be grasping straws here, but at any potential lead to him and his brother's restoration, he'll take it. The Holy Grail, while ridiculous, has not been pushed completely off the table, but as he has said before, there was too much blood trailing after this object, and he can't solely rely on information that were so fantastic that requires him to kill. He'll have to capture many other leads as much as he could.

Nodding in understanding, Jeanne stops alongside Edward as they face the door. Armstrong soon joins as Edward began to knock, "Dr. Marcoh?" The young Alchemist chose the name Armstrong had used, "Are you in there? Hello?"

The door opens, and his sight met the barrel end of a gun.

The Alchemists had a second to react, Jeanne acted half of that. The Holy Maiden bolts right into the house and grabbed the wrist of the gunman, pinning him against the wall. A startled sound welled up from the old man.

The Alchemists outside blinked while the youngest Elric inside the crate asked what were the noises he heard, since he could not see.

"Release your weapon this instant," Jeanne commanded.

"Wh-Who are you?" Marcoh was baffled that a girl of her physique was able to trap him like this.

"I knew it! It is you!" Armstrong walks in as Jeanne forced Marcoh's release of his gun. "It's good to see you again!"

"…What the hell, he almost shot me!" Edward is rather peeved at that.

Dr. Marcoh's form trembles like a cornered frightened animal, "No. Please. I don't want to go back. Don't make me go back there!"

"It's alright, Dr. Marcoh," Armstrong touched Jeanne's shoulder. She read the silent asking in the larger man's eyes. Assuring that there were no other weapons in Marcoh's hold, Jeanne releases the old man. "Please, we're just here to speak with you."

"You think I'll trust you so easily?" Marcoh spat, rubbing his wrist in pain. "Or maybe you're here to kill me, to keep me quiet."

Armstrong frowns, "If we were here to do such things, we would have done it by now." He drops the crate off his back unceremoniously, and Alphonse stumbles out with a yelp much to Edward's dismay.

"Now, let's all sit down and talk!"

There was distrust in Marcoh's eyes, but eventually - seeing as there were no other choice even if these people were here to take him or kill him, he accepted Armstrong's word.

Everyone settles around a table. To protect the sight of Alphonse's hollow body, a blanket conceals the large gap of his side. There was still tension emitting solely from the older man, the paranoid readiness to rebel whatever tricks they may have hidden. His face was wrinkled with age, and his eyes looked tired from being haunted by many nightmares.

"So you've actually deserted, and changed your name to live in hiding all the way out here in the countryside," Armstrong had deduced after hearing only a few words from the doctor, "If the rumors are true, you disappeared along with top-secret materials that you were assigned to create."

"I couldn't take it anymore," Marcoh said, "Order or no order, I became a doctor to save lives. The things that I've done…It was too much."

"What thing was that?" Edward presses.

"It took so many lives. So many innocents from the Ishvalan War died because of it."

The others listens quietly.

"I came here to atone the terrible deeds I've done, but no matter what I do, it would never have changed anything."

"Dr. Marcoh," Armstrong starts slowly, "What exactly was it you were assigned to research on? What is this thing?"

Like vomiting the name of this abomination, the doctor answered, "The Philosopher's Stone."

The brothers gasped. Armstrong's frown deepens.

Marcoh continues, "The top secret materials I took were my research documents, and the stone itself."

"Wait. You mean you still have it?" Edward grips to the table as if to break it. Alphonse stares with similar reaction only unseen.

Marcoh paused, and reached underneath his coat. A small jar was retrieved, carrying inside a blood red liquid substance. The doctor uncorks the jar and poured the red liquid onto the table. It should have spilled into a puddle, but it actually slid out, and takes form into a smooth shape like a pebble, but still appears so soft like gelatin.

Jeanne's eyes narrowed at the thing. As a Servant, she was able to tell that there was energy in this blob-like item, and despite its small size, it held very substantial power. It looked so much like the stone Cornello had. It seems completely harmless, so simple looking, but the feel of its presence had a...wrongness to it. She can't pinpoint what, but…

"The Sage's Stone, The Grand Elixir, The Celestial Stone, The Red Tincture, The Fifth Element…" Marcoh listed off the many names of the Philosopher's Stone, "Just as it is called in anyway, it can take any form. It is not necessarily a stone."

Fascinated, Edward gently prods the red substance. It jiggled at his touch.

"It's incomplete however, so there's no way to know when it will reach its limit and become unusable."

But it's real. The Philosopher's Stone _is real_.

"Finished or not, it proved to be a powerhouse during the Ishvalan War, didn't it?" Edward said, "This looks just like the stone that fake priest in Liore had. It was incomplete, but it still proved able to amplify his Alchemy and ignore Equivalent Exchange." He smiles, "If an imitation can do that much, then just imagine the kind of power the real thing can bring."

Utterly pleased, he threw his request, "Please Dr. Marcoh, I need to see your research materials!"

To hear this come from a boy he does not know yet is familiar with the legend of the stone, Marcoh looks to Armstrong, "Major, who exactly is this child?"

The Strong-Arm Alchemist answered, "He is a State Alchemist."

"What?! But he's so young!" Marcoh rubbed his temples to sooth a headache, "So many soldiers had turned in their State Certification after the war. They couldn't handle being human weapons anymore, and now, the military brings in a child? Boy, what you're doing is no game-"

"You don't think I know what I signed up for?" Edward rebukes, "It's not the life I wanted, but I don't have any other choice. If this is a mistake, then it's a mistake I have to bear. There's no other path but this one."

"But why? What could you possibly gain from this?"

There was a long pause before Edward and Alphonse decided to reveal their secret, during this, Jeanne has never once removed her sight from the stone. A swirl of sickness roams within her stomach looking at it, unnerved by it. Whatever this is, she felt the drive to pull the people here away from it, to distanced themselves from it, or for her to abolish it at once.

She does not know why. She can make no strong arguments that reasons why this unfinished stone should be avoided. But somehow, she feels so sickened at the sight of it. Felt the desperate need to get rid of it. This stone... What on earth is it?

"I see. You've committed the taboo," Marcoh said after the brothers told their tale, "It's no wonder you believe this stone would help restore your bodies. I find it appalling that you were able to transmute a human soul to this armor at such a young age. With your talents, perhaps you do have what it takes to complete the stone."

Edward's expression lit, "Then-"

"However, I cannot let you have my research."

Like a door was slammed in front of him, Edward recoiled before steeling his gaze, "Not even to get our bodies back?"

"I cannot show you my research. You must not seek that stone. This is the devil's research!"

The Fullmetal Alchemist opens his mouth, to negotiate, to persist, maybe be imposing a little. This was his chance, his only chance to undo his regret long ago and bring back what was stolen from his little brother, what was stolen from the both of them. He has to get through to this guy! There wasn't any consideration to why Marcoh refuses to cooperate, why he had the fear in his eyes as if the Devil was nearby, why this Philosopher Stone was considered so evil. He just has to get this stone. He has to-!

"Ed."

The voice of Jeanne takes his focus.

"I don't think you should use this stone."

Her words shocked the brothers. She made no explanation, blatant and simple, while her furrowed expression aimed solely at the incomplete stone.

"...what?" Edward sounded.

"This may not be the right way for you or Alphonse to take," Jeanne advises, "I don't think…I believe you boys should not accept this stone."

He stares at her, almost without comprehension. There was no way to understand what Jeanne meant. There was no way for him to remotely consider accepting what she had just said.

"...Why the hell not?"

Armstrong stands once the Fullmetal Alchemist rose from his chair, "Edward."

"Why shouldn't we use this stone?" Edward asked, almost too impassively.

Jeanne takes a breath, and answers without hesitation, "There's something to Dr. Marcoh's fear. If what he says is true, then don't seek for this stone."

Alphonse was speechless. He didn't understand. Why does neither Marcoh or Jeanne want them to use the stone? The brothers had explained how much this means to them, Alphonse wanted so bad to get back what Edward had lost to save him. Why won't Marcoh let them? Why did Jeanne say that they shouldn't?

His older brother responds, "What the hell Jeanne? You know what this stone means to us. What me and Al had to deal with just to get this far, we had to fight for our lives just for this moment, and you're saying that I should just turn this down? Give me a reason!"

What about what she said in Liore? That she would like to see the brothers again with their real bodies? Was that just a complete lie? How can this girl tell him not to take the chance he had been relentlessly searching for? Who is she to tell him what to do?

He asked her these questions, and this was his response, "I can't explain it, there's just something very off about this, and that we need to stay out of this," Jeanne knew how ineffective or unsensible her reasoning was, were it anyone else she's speaking to, they would have listened to her without trouble, but as she has seen, the Fullmetal Alchemist is a stubborn individual that could not be moved by her words alone.

"That's not a good answer!" Edward was kept at bay by Armstrong.

The girl's eyes softened, "Please reconsider, I know how much you two have lost and struggled, but-"

"No, you don't."

It was said so quietly, but in this small room, everyone heard the sharpness in his tone. Alphonse immediately reached out for him, the pieces of his armor rattles, threatening to fall.

Without restraint, Edward laid the facts, "You weren't there. You can't imagine what it was like. Little kids thinking that by the next day everything was going to be alright, but instead they went through a nightmare," and no matter how many times they wake up, it will never go away. The horror of seeing his screaming brother deconstruct before his eyes, the agony and cries of his missing arm.

The unrecognizable, mutilated corpse at the center of their work. It's dying gasp, it's charcoal, rotten skin, it's instances of movements and twitch. That abomination, their _mother_.

"I've worked too hard to give this up now, Jeanne!" Frustration spat before he could consider his words, he proclaims by the point of his finger and the arm he did not lose on that fateful day, "You have no idea what kind of hell we've been through!"

"That's enough Edward!" Armstrong forces him to sit down. The boy resumes fuming, angry at the audacity of Jeanne. Give up the Philospher Stone? How could she suddenly turn unsupportive? How could she turn on them?

No words left from Jeanne's mouth. There was no anger within her at his words, but her heart did grew a little heavy. Because the truth was, she really didn't know. She didn't know what it must have been like to be in their position, what must have happened when they've committed the taboo, and the life they have to endure thereafter. Their limbs and entire body taken, the dealings of their sins a constant reminder.

She didn't know what to say then.

"…I'm very sorry," Dr. Marcoh spoke after the silent aftermath of Edward's vocal lash, "I understand the suffering you boys must have gone through, but even so, I cannot give you my research," bowing his head, the doctor solemnly said, "Please, just go."

The look that broke through Edward tugged a string in Jeanne's heart. After another failed attempt to reason with the older man and no success, Edward finally left, noticeably avoiding looking at Jeanne, much to her heavy heart. Alphonse wanted to go after his brother, but in his condition, to move so much would have him fall apart, and he too felt disheartened at something so close be so far away, he glances at Jeanne and all that echoes within his mind is to know why? Of course, he believes his older brother to have acted too hot-headedly, but it was understandable. He was his brother, he would always understand.

"Well, I can't say it hasn't been good to see you again, Dr. Marcoh," Armstrong said as he stands up, taking Alphonse and carries him on his back.

"...Are you going to report me?"

The Strong-Arm Alchemist was about to reach for the doorknob, he halts at Marcoh's question, "...What for? I've only met a small-time doctor I've mistook for another, nothing worth reporting in."

A hint of understanding glossed over the Major's eyes, "We all knew the hell that war had been. You were not the only one who chose to run from there," his smile was a bitter one. Alphonse was surprised to hear a rare tone from the normally vibrant man.

Marcoh read the lines in between Armstrong's words, and nods, "My greatest regret was that I did not leave as soon as you did. That took courage, even if we would be labeled as cowards," he sighs, "But in the end..."

A shadow of deep poignant that did not fit the man of his character cascades over Armstrong's eyes, "Yes, it changes nothing."

Even if they spent the rest of their lives in repent and in forever service to the people whose lives they've changed, it will never recover the lives they've taken.

The door opens and the State Alchemist with Alphonse moves to leave, but they realized that their travelling guest was not following, "Jeanne?"

"...I'll be right with you, I just need to speak with the doctor for a moment."

Both veteran Alchemists and Alphonse looked at her, wondering what she wishes to say to Marcoh. The Major eyed her in thought, "...Very well. Don't take too long, our next train will arrive soon," at his departure, he shuts the door behind him.

Alone with this girl who had easily dealt with the doctor as if he was a mere mouse to her, Marcoh shifts in his seat. "Do you...have a question for me?"

Jeanne looks to the red thing on top of the table, "I wish to see that up close."

He didn't expect the request, and he was hesitant to follow it through. When he did, Jeanne cups the blood-red substance in her hands and brought it close to her.

For a moment, there was no comment. Marcoh watched with a frown, and a sudden thought came. Surely, this girl couldn't suspect that...

"...I understand now," her eyes shone with remorse.

Servants are incredible beings. All have amazing abilities, such as their sensibility to be stronger than animals. However, for Rulers like Jeanne, they are embedded with far more keen senses than any of the Servant Classes unless the Heroes themselves have such skills. For Ruler Servants like Jeanne, the ability to tell apart from a bucket of prana, and something else, this would be the few instances of what other privileges she has.

Eyes closed, she pressed her hands together with the unfinished product in between, and prays.

A glow blooms beneath her palms. The doctor's eyes widen, "What are you-?!"

He stops when he heard the many, desperate cries resound within his room. They were so mumbled and so faint, anyone else who would hear this would think that they're listening to the sounds of a small continuing gust, but Tim Marcoh knew what they actually were. Tears welled up, but he controlled his emotions just enough in order to see the works of Jeanne in front of him.

The agonizing cries of so many evolved into relief and gratitude, and then, it all went quiet. She reveals her hands, the stone she had held was gone.

"You..." The doctor was at a near loss for words. She knew. She knew all along! But how?! You could stare into the substance and never tell that this abomination was actually-

Her eyes stops the doctor's thoughts in mid-sentence, and even drawing his mind a blank when he had the instincts to reach for a weapon. "The deeds you've done may remain with you, but I see the immense weight of regret you carry. Should you come across anymore works like these, if you know how to, I want you to destroy them, and set them free."

Compassion radiates from Jeanne's smile, "The people of this village have been grateful of the doctor they know as Mauro. I hope for the rest of your life, you will find some peace with these villagers."

"Who...are you?"

She merely answered with her name, and exits the house, leaving the dumbfounded doctor behind.

Regrouping with the others at the bottom of the stairs. Golden eyes shot her way before the boy turns and walks for the train station, Jeanne eyes his back sadly. _I'm so sorry._

The Elric brothers had indeed worked so vigorously for the Philosopher's Stone, but if their humanity has anything to say, what Jeanne now knows will shake their spirits. It was this reason that she was hesitant to tell either of them.

"Are you ready?" Armstrong asks.

Swallowing down her tampered heart, she nodded, "Yes, let's continue."

At their trip back to the train station and the predicament of Alphonse' arm falling off. The way back was quiet, not the peaceful sort, or the friendly sort, yet strangely, the tension she thought she would sense from Edward has not lingered. While he is avoiding eye-contact, he seems less angry than before.

"I'm actually surprised you haven't used force against the doctor," Armstrong suddenly spoke. "Why didn't you, Edward? Though incomplete, the stone should have been fairly useful, and you had plenty of ways to take it."

Threats of bringing Marcoh's whereabouts to the military, the fact that he is an old doctor and Edward is more physically adept, there was even the glorious moment of the stone being right there in front of the boy and he could have just snatched it.

"...I won't go that far," Edward answered, "He's the only doctor this town has, even with the stone so close that I could just taste it..."

"We would never wish to harm anyone for our own gain," Alphonse said. "Dr. Marcoh was set not to give us his research for whatever reason, but we managed to get a lot from this anyway. We now know that it is possible to make a Philosopher's Stone."

The Strong-Arm Alchemist smiles approvingly to the brothers show of human decency. What amazing boys they are.

"Yeah...well, I'm still blaming her," the Fullmetal Alchemist addressed Jeanne, he had some suspicions that whatever chance they had to obtain the research no matter how small, they diminished at her words.

The girl did not hold his bitterness against him, yet does he actually wish to ignore the obvious fright Marcoh had for that stone? While Jeanne hadn't known the truth until she grasped the unfinished stone, Marcoh clearly knows what the thing he created was. Then again, this boy does seem to be the type who would rather see the facts themselves than simply take it by word.

She had looked up from her thoughts, and found Edward in front of her. Jolted at his sudden presence, she couldn't question when Edward spoke before her, "Now are you going to explain to me what that was about?"

"Huh?"

"What was it that set you off in there?" The Fullmetal Alchemist narrowed his gaze. When he had time to think after Jeanne remained at Marcoh's house for a moment, his thoughts were rumbled with mixed feelings of the joy to discover the Philosopher's Stone's existence, and the frustration of being unable to get it. He thought of what Jeanne said and how utterly baffled he was to hear her try to dissuade him from pursuing the stone when she was pretty clear of her support from before in Liore. She never revealed her disproval until the product was right before them.

What made her suddenly turn antsy the moment she looked upon the incomplete stone?

"Just what do you know that I don't?"

There are times when one could admire the perceptiveness of a young man like Edward, and other times Jeanne wished it wasn't so honed.

"I..." She tugs the fabric of her sleeve, an uncomfortable, disheartened feature drew her face.

Edward's hand settles on his hip as he leans forth slightly, hardly in any mood to handle someone dancing around what should be a straight-forward answer, "Why didn't you want me to use that stone?"

Jeanne wanted to say it, if it's possible that this Philosopher's Stone is truly the only legitimate stone the brothers has been seeking, then these boys must understand that they should not reach out for it anymore, less their morals as human-beings will be challenged if they truly desire the return of their bodies. She isn't that worried for them to consider actually using a stone like the one in Marcoh's possession, listening to their reasons for never taking their chance by force from the doctor of meager strength, they are true to their consideration for others, and perhaps it's safe to say that they would think the truth of this stone to be horrendous.

But they may not want to believe it.

How could she tell them that the unfinished stone Dr. Marcoh had, their hope of regaining their bodies, was actually something so...God-forbidden. Yet at the same time, how could she not tell them the truth? Even if they don't believe her, they have to be warned, they have to be in the know, even if this would only lead Edward to shun her all the more and Alphonse to reconsider his thoughts of her, certainly she would not be wrong if she tells them the truth here and now.

"...Or were you really messing with us all this time?"

Edward's furrowed brows lessoned as he spoke the unlikely, but not disproven theory, that her care for them was actually just some façade, offering a false sense of kindness to a pair of pitiful kids. Shouting out encouragement, when all this time, all she believed in was their failure. It was as astoundingly improbable as it sounds considering the character of this girl, but if she is truly kind, then this is the push he needed to make for her to spill everything.

"That's not it at all!" Jeanne swore, "I genuinely do support you and Alphonse to regain your bodies back, if there is a way..."

But if this is all that there is for these boys to regain what they've lost, then she has to tell them. They must know that the path they walked on leads only to a pool of blood of slain victims. She opens her mouth to reveal the truth, the horrible truth of the Philosopher's Stone she had just purged.

...How very strange, she had hoped for Edward to stay away from any interest in the Holy Grail if it means to spill blood, and now she's doing it again with the Philosopher's Stone, all for the same reason.

"Wait!"

A shout interrupts her. The group turns to see Marcoh, running towards them.

"Dr. Marcoh? What is it?" Armstrong asked.

At the doctor's stop, and heavy breathing from sprinting all the way from his house, he reveals a paper note in between his fingers, "This is where my materials are hiding."

Shocked gasped escapes from the group. He's giving them the destination of his research? What on earth changed his mind?

"If you're determined to learn the truth without any regrets, then start looking here," Edward takes the paper note as the doctor added, "Who knows? Perhaps you have what it takes to find the truth, within the truth."

"What?"

A train whistle blew.

"Oh crap! That's our train!" Pocketing the note, Edward hurries to the station, "Thanks Dr...Mauro!"

The old man smiles briefly before shouting, "Just a moment! Jeanne, I must speak with you!"

Surprised, the girl stops.

"It will be quick. I promise."

There was an urgent importance in his tone, read clearly in the old man's eyes. To miss the train would mean that she will have to wait a couple of hours for the next, and that's only if this is not the last train for the day. However, Jeanne is sure that she can make time to hear what Marcoh has to say.

She turns to the others, "You three go on ahead, I will meet you all there."

The brothers looked to each other unsurely, until the Major ushers them along. Adjusting his hold of Alphonse, Armstrong said to Jeanne, "We will see you then!"

"Just hurry it up!" yelled Edward. The three Alchemists ran for the train.

Her time now taken as the doctor requested, Marcoh speaks, "Were you planning to tell those boys about the stone?"

The girl revealed her answer with a downcast expression.

"As I figured. Then consider my advice; let them discover this on their own."

"But..."

The doctor was gentle, "If you were to tell them and you have no proof, they wouldn't believe you most likely. I don't wish for you to tamper your acquaintanceship with those boys. It's best to let them see it with they're own eyes, if one of them proves himself to be the prodigy the military must have seen him to be." To crack the codes Marcoh had implanted in his notes, it should take the brothers over a month or two.

Jeanne wasn't quite certain of this, to go on traveling with them while carrying the knowledge they deserve to know, it was dishonesty almost.

"Please, consider where they stand. If you tell them what could be no more than a lie simply to push them away from their goal, they would see you as no friend of theirs. Those boys will eventually find out either way, but until that happens, it is a choice to remain whatever you have with them intact."

Whatever she had with them? Does he mean to refer to them as companions? Well, Jeanne honestly does not know if they have reached that point...but admittedly, she would have liked that.

The fact that she held such feelings condemns her doing something devastating as it was to commit a sin, as a Servant whose existence in this world is only temporary. Yet despite that, Jeanne would not mind getting to know more about the brothers. She would like to associate with them as often as she could, even though by nature she is a quiet individual. Those good people have managed to charmed her in a way that she wishes to look after them, and not out of the duty she had personally set on herself.

But will she be worthy to be considered a friend of theirs, when she keeps silent of the one terrible thing beyond their acknowledgement, that which will help them, but at a horrible cost?

"For them to understand, they must read my research first. To see the evidence from what I've written...what I've done," the old man deeply grimaced with regret, "To go through the obstacles that is unraveling my work, they'll know how genuine this work of evil really is."

After a thought that should not take too long with the train waiting for her, she discerns the value in Marcoh's advice. To reveal them the truth now and they don't believe her, then the rest of the trip as well the travel to Central City will be worse than awkward, and that could stagger Edward's belief in her words to find the Overseer, she needed his trust if his Command Seals were to be removed. She at last came to answer, "...Alright."

There was no enthusiasm in her voice, this will indeed be a hefty challenge. She will have to put up a smile, even though in truth, she was troubled, but for their sake, she will have to somehow support them, that once they discovered the truth, they must not give up regardless.

That was what she wanted to say, she understood how much the brothers have struggled, and how much they've lost, but there can be a better way for them. She never meant to say 'stop seeking the Philosopher's Stone', as if to tell them to stop seeking the means to bring their bodies back. What she wanted to say was that there can be other means for them to look into, and to never lose hope if it's truly possible.

Except for the Holy Grail of course, but that was already off the table for certain.

Marcoh offered the best of a smile he could muster, "I wish to thank you as well...when I saw you use Alchemy to release them, I was frightened at first, but after you left, it was as if a heavy weight rose from my chest. I had thought that in order to show my apology, I would use the stone for a good purpose, but all I've done was kept them imprisoned."

The train whistled behind Jeanne.

"I've taken too much of your time already, I hope you'll catch your train," Marcoh said, showing his hand, "And I also hope for those boys to regain their bodies."

"As do I," the Holy Maiden grasped and shook his grip, "Take care of yourself."

"One step at a time, I suppose."

One final parting, Jeanne then hurries to the station. As she goes, the wheels of the transportation had already begun to move.

"Where the hell is she?" Edward peers through the windows, seeking but no luck in finding Jeanne. The scene before him moves along like watching a slide-show, and the station grew farther away. "...Damn."

"Looks like she will have to wait for the next one," Armstrong comments as Edward takes his seat. Alphonse had already been placed into another private cart, the Strong-Arm Alchemist is quite sure the armor boy will enjoy the company of cows.

The Fullmetal Alchemists sighed, resting his chin against his palm, "Pretty much. I guess we'll see her later." Even for her questionable and incomprehnsible change of attitude over the support of the brothers goal, he didn't want to leave her behind. He's not that bitter.

"I wonder what was so important for Marcoh to talk with Jea-"

He glances out the window, and sees a blonde girl sprinting alongside the speeding train.

"-Jea Jya Jaa-!"

Edward's mind momentarily stumbles as did his tongue, he shot up, pulling down the window to open and calls out in utter disbelief, "J-Jeanne?!"

Matching the speed of the train with impossibly incredible speed, Jeanne spots the open window and leapt. It would have been amazing on it's own had she caught onto the side of the train, and Edward had actually reached out to catch her. But rather than that happening, the girl had jumped to the roof of the train.

"Excuse me Ed!"

After her polite asking, Jeanne grips to the edge of the train and maneuvers her way through the window with her feet entering first. Edward trips over his own feet and drops into his seat beside Armstrong as the girl threw herself in, landing perfectly inside.

"Whew! I made it..." She breathes out. The Holy Maiden moves for her seat and slumps into it, smoothing the wrinkles of her clothing and closes her eyes for a rest.

Edward's mouth hung open. Armstrong, on the other hand, looked impressed.

Increasing their amazement, Jeanne innocently asked, "So the next stop is Resembool, correct?"

"...Yes," the Major answered, the only person collected, if only impressed. "That is correct."

For the rest of the train ride, Jeanne proceeds to admire the passing view of the country side so familiar of her home, and Edward gawking at the girl for nearly the entire trip.

* * *

Tim Marcoh; the Crystal Alchemist, walks his way back to his house. The people he has come to know during his time here greeted him with a smile and warm gratitude. Some offered an invite to have him over for dinner, and others handed him baskets of goods to show their appreciation. Many of them were his patients, and many of them were the relatives of his patients, treating the old doctor as if he was part of their family.

These were good people, and Tim Marcoh had stopped persisting the idea that he would ever get rid of the tremendous weight of shame from his chest. He did not deserve kindness, not with what he has done. He did not deserve the smiles and acceptance from anyone, they were no different to the ones he had morphed into nothing but their life-force and becoming that damnable stone.

All he ever wished to do was use his Alchemy to rescue lives, for people who otherwise would not survived, and return to their loved ones with open arms. For science to continue reaching the medical feats that would help any people suffering with any wounds or diseases. It was his goal, his dream. He only wanted to help people, but orders from the higher ups have stained the hands that should have been used to preserve lives.

Forced to go against his beliefs and duty as a doctor. Hearing the screams and pleas of those who weren't even enemy soldiers during the Ishvalan war. It was hell itself. He was shown the dark truth of the military's corruption and evil, and what was his response of defiance?

He ran.

He didn't want to keep making the Philosopher's Stones, so he ran. He took everything he could from that place and never looked back, not even for his team. He had thought of them, he has worried for them, he shares their disgust and horror of what they've done, and yet he left them behind.

It didn't even matter that Marcoh chose to abandon this project, the military can always find another Alchemist like him. Even with proof of this cursed work, where could he go when the only place of authority to deal with this crime against humanity, was the culprit? What affects has he done by leaving his team of doctors and trapped victims behind? Nothing.

He had thought he could redeem himself here, but as of late, he was starting to wonder if such a thing could ever be possible. Until he met his recent guests.

 _You have no idea what kind of hell we've been through!_

Someone who has suffered through the worst kind of torment, and for someone so young to keep walking forward in acceptance of his sin, it amazed Marcoh. Perhaps, all this time, running from his problems was never the right solution...no, he knew this all along, but he was too afraid to do otherwise. Even for all the souls he had enslaved within the red product, Marcoh feared only for his own life, it was hypocritical of him.

Yet, if there is a small chance for him to make things right, then he will take it. Tim Marcoh is already an old man, even for an Alchemist, he is no combatant. Any hope to rebel against the government of Amestris would only lead to failure, and he has already admit to himself of his cowardice. Still, something must be done about this, the truth of the military must be revealed. For those _monsters_ to be revealed.

Perhaps this won't change his designated place in hell, but that's fine enough. This operation simply cannot continue. When he saw the passion burning within that boy's eyes, and when he saw Jeanne free those souls, it woke something within him. They were young still, and Marcoh would never wish to have them involve in this mess, but he's hoping that once the brothers decode the notes, then those like his old friend Armstrong can do something to make this right. He'll have to leave everything to them, and may their contribution be the start of some change. To discover an even more horrific truth, within the truth of the military.

Whether they succeed, or not, remains unseen.

An exhausted sigh leaves him as he enters his house. Maybe he should just sleep for the rest of the day, although, the dinner invitation he received from the villagers did sound enticing, he should reconsider then.

"Hello Dr. Marcoh."

The doctor gasped, his sight snaps to the corner of his home.

"It's so good to see you again."

Her voice was alluring as was her appearance. Midnight hair waves from her head pass her shoulders. Her skin so pale it looked cold, and her lips painted with dark coloring. A black dress over her body, black gloves around her arms, and formal shoes to match.

To call her human would be a mistake for Tim Marcoh, who long ago has known the truth of this _lustrous_ creature.

He saw his gun, right where he dropped it. If he could get it, he could escape-

A rope of chains wraps around his arm that reached for his weapon. A tight, bone squeezing trap. Another chain rope looped around his throat, preventing him to scream. His body was yanked back, he slams against the wall and at his fall, a heel jabs against his chest, so deep that it could crush through his ribs.

"Be gentle now, he's an important candidate after all."

Marcoh's mind warps with intense fear and pain. His face marred with horror. Completely immobiled by the chains around him, he could only look as the dark woman slowly approaches him, his captor keeps him still.

"You've been very naughty, Dr. Marcoh. Leaving like you did can break a girl's heart, you know?" Her fingers presses against where her heart supposedly is, and where a prominent tattoo is seen.

Marcoh instantly recognized the image, it was practically the birthmark of this woman and others like her, a reptile eating the end of its tail, like the ouroboros legend, and a sign that this woman was not human. However, it was different than the last time he's seen this tattoo. The ouroboros was the same, but there appears to be a new set, an addition to the image, as if the tattoo is housed within a red temple.

"Allow me to introduce a new acquaintance of mine," the dark woman said, greeting for the silent figure that pins Marcoh. She was someone the doctor did not recognize at all, a woman with abnormally long, pink hair. A mask over her eyes, a dark short dress and long boots. In her hands were the chains that traps Marcoh, and she bore a cool expression.

Marcoh does not see the tattoo on the second woman, but he already had a strong suspicion that she was not human either, and that terrifies him all the more.

"Say hello to Rider," the dark woman, the lustrous monster known as Lust, revealed the alias of her associate.

* * *

 **Beyond their knowledge of the sinister arrival of someone who works for the man in white, and the unforseen fate of this country, the group resumes to Resembool.**

 **A/N: When I had thought up of this chapter, I actually wasn't planning to input Ed's anger towards Jeanne's suspicions of the Philosopher's Stone unfinished product, but then I wondered that Jeanne would be the type to catch something like that, and she is a Servant.**

 **While Servants in general may not be able to tell the difference between mass amount of Pranas and Souls, since Souls are just generally great source of Prana which is why if a Servant eats it, they'll have the Prana Support they need. Jeanne however would be a special case since she is a Ruler Servant, and having the Revelation Skills that something is amiss or something very dark is nearby, she would catch on to this.**

 **So I had Jeanne stay behind, and so came to be the scene of her purifying the Philosopher's Stone. I hope it was okay to read. Now though, Jeanne is introduced to the corruption existing within the military. The question here lies: Should she care?**

 **Of course, Jeanne would care, but she still has her duty as Ruler, and she's going to be a busy Mediator to keep the war at a stable level with all the Servants summoned. I guess if Edward is going to take time to recover, she would probably leave and come back just to deal with Ruler stuff and all that, but everything has been pretty minor ever since the battle between Alter Saber and Assassin against the Three Rogue Faction Servants. Who knows though?**

 **Also! I made a mistake! I've underestimated how long this chapter was going to be, and the same might happen for the next chapter. If that is the case, then the reveal of Edward's Servant won't be known until two or three more chapters.**

 **Now you're probably wondering how he's going to summon a Servant when it's read in this chapter that he won't partake in this competition that requires him to kill, and that he won't do something so similar to committing Human Transmutation because of obvious reasons. Well, life always finds a way, and you will all find out how soon.**

 **I'll be going off and work on the other chapters for my other stories. Thank you so much for reading! Please leave a kind and honest review! Until next time!**


	6. Resembool

Chapter 6: Resembool

At last, they came to Resembool.

The soft scent of the evergreen grass surrounding the town brought a pleasing feel of nostalgia to Jeanne's heart. It reminded her so much of her home; the outings of friendly neighbors, the simple lodgings and stores built by their own two hands, and the familiarity between the townspeople, as if living in this village was enough to consider themselves family.

It was nothing so extravagant as it would for a city, a kingdom, even a castle, but Resembool's beauty was nothing less notable; it was its simplicity. That their knowledge in hard labor and the company of others were enough needs and gifts from God to suffice, and for that, the Holy Maiden instantly came to adore this place.

When she and the others stepped down from the train, with Alex Armstrong carrying again the crate Alphonse hides in, they entered the town together and brought about the villagers attention. When the folks saw Edward they immediately came into a crowd, greeting in happiness for his presence that seems to fall on the line between not coming here often, and a constant visitor to his hometown. For a reckless boy who needs his automail constantly repaired, this would make sense.

After a brief chat with the people, the group resumes to their destination, down a path where a two-story house is closer to the field. A dog rested upon the porch, and he lift his head at the instinct of visitors. The canine happily barked at a familiar boy along the rustic smell of that who hides in the crate. Hopping to his feet, he ran to meet them with eagerness, from the mechanics of his front left leg shifting as he moved.

What a wondrous thing for automail to assist even animals. Truly a feat that could impress even famous inventors beyond Jeanne's time in her world.

"Hey Den," Edward affectionately pats the head of the named dog, "Looks like you missed us."

"Anxious I would say. Is it so hard to send a letter once in a while?" Stepping out of the house is a short, elderly woman. Her pale hair that must have once been chestnut brown pinned up, and round-glasses over her experienced eyes.

"My oh my, what did you boys do now?" Even for the old woman's aged sight, she quickly takes note of the damage, if Edward's missing arm was anything to go by.

"Hey there Granny!" Edward greeted.

"We're home!" Alphonse shouted through the wooden crate.

"You certainly have been through a lot, haven't you?" The old woman evaluates.

"It's a long story," Edward moved his coat to unveil his missing arm, and lifts the case where his damaged automail is contained, "Can you fix it?"

"We'll just have to see and find out," yet the old woman snorted at his question, her family were more than adept in this line of work as an automail repair shop after all. "Anyway, why don't you tell me who these people are?"

Armstrong sets down Alphonse's crate to shake hands with the old woman. The elder was not intimidated by his stature in the slightest, greeting him as she would for any. "This is Major Alex Louise Armstrong, and over here is Jeanne," Edward introduced.

Once she shakes hands with the girl, the old woman revealed her name, "I'm Pinako Rockbell. I trust that Edward hasn't been too much trouble? He always has a habit of making a ruckus even for a feisty little runt."

The Fullmetal Alchemist twitched.

"In fact, it's been a while since I've last seen him. I'd say he's gotten shorter."

"You got it all wrong Granny," A growl seeps through Edward's forced smile, his form trembles with anger. "You're supposed to say _"look how big you've grown"_..."

"Now why would I say something so untrue?"

"At least I'm taller than a tiny old bag like you!"

The long-time acquaintances proceeded with their insults, tossing surprisingly creative names back and forth, but it was clear just how close they really are. Seeing this, Jeanne smiles at the scene.

And gasped when a thrown wrench knocked against Edward's head.

"I thought I told you to call before you come for maintenance!"

Shouting from the balcony was the Fullmetal Alchemist's Automail Engineer, his closest friend since childhood. A girl with sunflower blonde hair, wearing a green bandana over her head. Blue eyes like the sky itself, and clothing fitting for a mechanic like her. Black smudges were over her cheeks and forehead, meaning she had just came from working on a project.

"Dammit Winry! Are you trying to kill me?!" Edward shouted, grasping the pained spot on his forehead.

Laughter broke out from the girl upstairs, and a bright smile bloomed as she ignored his outburst, "Welcome back," she happily said.

A grumble from Edward was her answer, and Jeanne found no actual danger within the area, only familial welcoming here.

This is indeed home.

"What happened to you?!"

Within the house of the Rockbells, Winry cried out for the state of her creation, mourning the wrecked automail in her arms. The Rockbells have long known the secrets of the Elric Brothers, and so Alphonse was free to be seen outside of his crate. A cup of warm beverage were given to each who can drink as they've taken the available seats in the living room.

"Sorry. It's a little smashed up," there wasn't much care in Edward's tone. Nothing to get worked up about if his automail can be fixed.

"A little?! This is not a little! I've worked my butt off for this! Why'd you have to go do something stupid and destroy it?!"

The boy shrugged, "It's still the same. Just in pieces."

The deserved response was a fist to his face, the boy was sent tumbling to the ground, "And not just you…" Winry looks to Alphonse who shakes under her glare, "But you're a little smashed up too, aren't you?"

"Uh...Well...I..." Without a chance to tell a futile explanation, Winry slams her foot against his helmet, kicking the youngest Elric to Edward's side.

Jeanne was left stunned as she watched the brothers be mercilessly beaten into, and wondered if she should step in. But with Pinako's lack of a reaction as she sat in her chair comfortably with a smoke pipe in hand, this must be a norm in their household, and the fury of Winry does not entail that she will hesitate even with bystanders in the way, so out of precaution, Jeanne kept at bay.

Even to the Ruler Servant, the Automail Engineer has shown herself to be quite scary.

The brothers lay on the ground helplessly, Winry huffs a hefty sigh, "Honestly, all you two do is worry me." This is what promised the engineer's non-existent malice.

The passionate, over-reaction stemmed from the concerns she has for the Elrics. Knowing Edward and Alphonse very well, she has witnessed countless accounts of their reckless nature along with visual proof of being harmed whenever they visit. If someone like her doesn't emphasize the importance of their safety, they would hardly care for their own well-being. Thus, she insists that they take better care for themselves, or face the consequences of igniting her fury.

Pinako inhales her pipe and breathes out a puff of smoke before speaking, "Let me make sure if I heard you correctly. You boys wish to go to Central as soon as possible for important information you need?"

Recovering from the attacks, Edward's answer was slightly muffled, "That's right, this is a rush order basically."

"The only thing is, your arm isn't the only problem," Pinako point to his other automail, "Your leg could also use some adjusting."

"Looks like you've growth stumped after all," if it was meant to be a tease, Winry said it too factually.

"Oh shut it!"

Returning to the main topic, Pinako continues, "Leg aside, the arm has to be build from scratch."

"Is there a chance you can have it done in a week?"

The old woman raises an eyebrow at Edward, placing the pipe between her lips, "Hmph! You must be joking." Another puff of smoke, she then added, "Three days is all we need. But to fix your leg too, we'll have to put you up with a spare one."

A prosthetic leg was given to him, designed with no metal or complex mechanics. It will do for the few days Pinako and Winry will spend repairing Edward's automails. "Don't worry, we'll be finished before you get used to it."

Of course, this will be no easy task for the old woman and her granddaughter. To have the automails ready in three days would mean to work all day and all night with minimal breaks.

"Sorry for all the trouble," Edward apologizes genuinely. He understood the amount of work they put into automail in general. It's much to ask for in a short time, and he's hoping to pay them back in any way possible.

Neither of the Rockbells revealed any hint of troubled. Winry's expression is as bright as day, "You want to get to Central as soon as possible, right? Well, I'll have to work my hardest to make that happen!" If it means to help these brothers for their bodies return, then she won't even considered taking any breaks. "But believe me Edward, for a rush order like this, the fees are gonna be costly for sure."

Of course, nothing says repayment any better than someone like Winry who will milk Edward dry.

* * *

After the removal of hanging remnants in Edward's shoulder and replacing his automail leg with a prosthetic, peaceful relaxation reigns within the home of the Rockbells. Armstrong volunteered to assist Pinako with whatever chores she had to complete, while her granddaughter have already begun formulating the designs and plans to build Edward's automail limbs. Alphonse sat outside the house near the chicken coop, spending time playing with Den as much as his body is able to, and Jeanne had just stepped out of the bathroom, wearing the bathrobe Winry offered for her to use.

The excitement of previous events happened in East City had build up quite a sweat, Jeanne could hardly contain her relishing the feel of hot water, truly giving her the experience of being alive once more as a human being, and not just a Servant. Normally, she wouldn't wish to intrude on anyone's belongings, but the Rockbells kindness not only allowed her to use their tub by her asking, Pinako has taken the liberty to wash her clothes as well.

Throughout her travels, caring for Rose's body had been a more demanding task than being Ruler has, and constantly, Jeanne had to rely on the generosity of strangers. One of the more difficult objective was upkeep hygiene that she could only find within forests that spares a fresh lake. It never deter Jeanne in the slightest, but moments like the Rockbells persisted generosity are always greatly appreciated. She hopes to repay them somehow, whatever way she can.

Jeanne enters a bedroom, lend only temporarily for her to dress in. Shutting the door behind her, she approached the bed where the luggage she had brought with since Liore settles upon. As she begun to dry off and change into a new wear, Jeanne thought about the time Edward's automail repair will take, and incidentally, how long she may stay for. If the process of rebuilding Edward's automail will take three days, then perhaps she should consider resuming her duties in between the days. However, once she had this thought, she soon discarded it.

To investigate the anomaly and the attempt on her life weighs heavily in her mind, but if she makes a poor decision that leaves Edward to Central City without her being there to insist his hurry to meet the Overseer, it could bring up a lot of complications. Then there were the Servants she had combated, there is no telling if they or the man known as Scar would go out of their way to track Edward down for the separate reasons that he is a Master and a State Alchemist, and the Fullmetal Alchemist is in a state where he cannot defend himself as well as he could if he had his automails. Leaving him unprotected is simply out of the question even with Armstrong present, and she has already given her word to protect the Elric brothers.

The concern of her incessant search for answers to these anomalies and the rogue Group of Masters remains, but all she can do as of now is to proceed one step at a time. No use pulling herself apart what's outside her capabilities. If there are any merits, it's that she hasn't sensed any commotion or battles between Servants since she left East City. Strangely quiet, but this can be reasonably explained that it was daytime in the land of Amestris, and no battle should occur where the public can easily catch sight of their fights until nighttime, when people would be less frequent among the roads, and vacant places available for Servants to battle to their heart's content albeit within necessary limitations.

These were the decisive and cautious moves done by the Masters of the previous Holy Grail Wars, to keep the battle ritual a secret from the public, at least that was the procedure until recently. Beside that, if all continues to be this peaceful, then Jeanne would have an easier mind staying in Resembool. So for the time being, she will watch over the brothers as they work to reach their goal. A goal that which heaves her guilty heart.

Consumed in her thoughts, the bedroom door opens.

"Now I know I left it here somewhere - " Missing an essential item for her work, Winry steps inside to search for it.

She met the soft blue eyes of Jeanne, and froze.

Walking in on someone while they change may bring some embarrassment, but they were both girls who were also not shy. What _did_ brought a pause to Winry was the sight of Jeanne's arms and entire back. A rainforest of red symbols and scattered feathers overtaking the faithful girl's form. Crawling around her limbs like vines, and her back a captivating tapestry of feathery extensions only an angel could bear.

Jeanne's hastily moves to put on her blouse, and Winry came back to her senses. The engineer stutters, "I-I'm sorry!"

She shuts the door at once, and waits outside of her own room in the hallway. It wasn't that long ago Winry agreed for Jeanne to use her room to change, but the engineer was so busy with her plans and so used to casually walking into her room without thought, it slipped from her mind. Once the surprise sets aside, her thoughts drifts to what she had seen, silently amazed.

A few minutes later, the door opens from within. Jeanne steps forth, fully clothed.

"Sorry. I guess I should have knocked first," said Winry.

But there was nothing to be sorry about, so thought the Holy Maiden. It was she who should have been more careful. Letting her guard down so easily in a room that can rightfully be accessible to its owner. Peeved only at herself, Jeanne shook her head, "This is your room. If anything, I'm the one intruding."

"N-no! It's totally fine!"

Hoping for no questions about what was seen, Jeanne made a request as she grips to the white fabric she wore, "Could you...not mention _that_ to anyone?"

"Oh! Definitely!" Trying as much as she could to ease herself, a great bounty of questions whelms within Winry. "I've never seen something like it though, and the thing on your back, it kind of looked like wings."

Jeanne had to agree with her, because it truly does appear like so, and it was a constant reminder of how audaciously worrying the abnormalities in this war are. Winry then explained herself for coming here, looking for an eraser to make some corrections to her designs, and Jeanne offers to assist, which Winry accepts.

As they searched around the room, Winry's curiosity for Jeanne surfaced, careful not to touch upon the topic of the strange red marks by the other girl's asking.

"It's Jeanne, right?" She asked, "How did you meet Ed and Al?"

"We've met in Liore," Jeanne answered, "They were looking for something and I've helped them," to spare Winry of any worries, however much the engineer understood the dangers the brothers faces, the Holy Maiden withheld information about Cornello. Though, she would like to say that the Elric brothers have taken a great part in helping the city. Freeing the people from a selfish deceit. Hopefully, the people of Liore have recovered somewhat, and are now in the process of peace. "We've parted ways afterwards, and it was only recent that I met them again in East City."

"And you started travelling with them?"

Jeanne chose her words carefully, "They needed to meet with someone in Central City, and I knew how to find him." If she wishes to prevent any kind of worry from Winry, then she will most certainly keep Edward's situation vague for the sake of the engineer's peace of mind. Aside from what Winry had saw on her arms and back, Jeanne must leave civilians out of the war as much as possible.

"I hope they haven't been too much to deal with, but then I'd be setting the bar too high." At ease once more, Winry sighs in a hopeless manner, "Those guys always gets themselves into trouble."

Quite curious of how familiar she sounded with the brothers, Jeanne asked, "You've known these brothers for a long time?"

"Yeah! Since we were kids," Winry proudly exclaims. "Everyday we've always hung out, and it's never a dull moment with those guys around. They're basically...well, part of our family."

The eraser had long since been found, but their conversation came in tune as they've taken a seat at the edge of the bed. Jeanne quickly found Winry to be very friendly, and very upfront with her feelings as demonstrated to those she is openly angry with, but she is without a doubt kind, and Jeanne soon learned the extreme passion the Resembool girl has for automail engineering.

Listening to Winry as she recalls a memorable moment when she was a child along with the troublesome brothers, an interesting thing caught Jeanne's eyes, looking at a photo hung on the wall beside the talking engineer. Jeanne had seen the framed pictures in the hallway; photos of Pinako and Winry, some with Winry alongside Edward and Alphonse in their childhood years, and then there were pictures like the one the Holy Maiden has her eyes on right now. It was of two people sharing similar features to Winry, appearing to be husband and wife.

"Are those your parents?"

Following her sight, Winry solemnly smiles at the picture of old memory, "Yeah. Yuriy and Sarah Rockbells. My dad was Granny Pinako's son."

Past tense.

"They were both doctors who were shipped off for the Ishvalan War, and..."

"...I see." Jeanne answered before Winry could, preventing her from telling a heartbreaking fact.

"They did a lot to help the wounded in the war," Winry said. "I've always admired them, as a kid and now."

"They are good people then. Brave ones," Jeanne received a thank you for her condolences, but after considering, she added, "Family itself is a wonderful thing to have. I think that the Elrics are very grateful to be part of yours."

With those kind words, she gently grasps the shoulder of Winry, offering her own smile that carries comfort. Whatever small scale of grief that would come, it was lifted by the support of Jeanne, and the automail engineer's expression became less sad as she agrees.

Their moment of bond concluding, Winry sets off to finish her plans before getting started with the real work at her shop. Jeanne bid her well as she reached the stairs. Once the engineer leaves, Jeanne walks into the living room, wondering what else she should do at this moment before hearing some activities outside - likely Armstrong "chopping" woods.

Perhaps there is something Jeanne could do to compensate the hospitality the Rockbells have given her. She goes outside to find out.

Stepping onto the porch, Jeanne witnesses Armstrong carrying an incredible amount of wood his strong build could carry in one arm. He sets them down in front of the house as Pinako sits at a table, scribbling upon a piece of paper related to her work. "Oh. Hello there Jeanne," Pinako greeted.

"Good afternoon Ms. Rockbell, Major Armstrong."

"It's fine to call me Pinako. Your clothes are hanging behind the house right now, they should be ready by morning."

Grateful, Jeanne asked, "Is there anything I can do to help around here?"

"Not at the moment, but I'll let you know if anything comes up." The old woman invited Jeanne to sit with her, and the girl did just that. Armstrong sat among the steps for a rest, dabbing away the sweats with a rag in hand.

"Where are the brothers?" Jeanne asked, prompting Armstrong's head to perk up in realization.

"Come to think of it, I haven't seen Ed in a while," he said.

Pinako answers, "Alphonse is right by the coop. As for Ed, he said he was going to see his mother's grave," she sets aside a document. "Trisha Elric, a young woman with a good heart. Have the boys talked about her much to you?"

A frown came as the girl figures how to answer that, but Pinako corrects herself, "I suppose they would bring her up in someway, they told me that you knew what they've done."

"Yes..." Jeanne answered slowly, revealing the sadness she still carries knowing that.

The old woman sets down her pencil, stretching her bones into a quiet pop, "It was a frightening thing to be visited by an old armor with a familiar young voice, carrying a boy missing his arm and leg."

"You were the first ones they went to? After they..."

A nod. "We were also the ones who gave Edward his automails," Pinako explains, settling her back into the support of her chair as she lights her pipe, "But that's only after two people from Central came by and spruced Ed's spirits up."

"Colonel Mustang and Lieutenant Riza? Am I right?" Armstrong offered the names.

"Yes, those were the two," after a smoke, a question is breathed out from Pinako, "Major. What kind of lives have the boys been leading these days? We never get any letters from them. I would assume that they don't want to worry us, those numbskulls."

"Ed and Al are well known for their Alchemy, even in Central. Though sometimes, that recognition gets them into trouble, they always manage to find it wherever they go. But they're alright now. We always keep an eye out for them, and those boys are strong enough to hold on their own."

"Strong eh?" Pinako stares at the blue sky, "I suppose that's one way to call them."

"Winry tells me that they are, in a way, a part of your family," Jeanne says.

The old woman smiles, "I can't argue with that. I could even call them my grandsons. I knew their father you see...an old drinking buddy. God knows what he's doing right now."

"Their father?" Jeanne has only heard some things about the Elric brothers mother, but no mention of their father. Curious, she listens for more information.

Pinako shrugs, "I don't even know if that man is still alive. I haven't heard from him since he up and left his family behind before Trisha died."

The faithful girl was shocked. Leaving his family? What on earth would make a father do such a thing?

"If you ever bring it up in front of the boys, you'll get different responses," Pinako says, "Alphonse seems willing to understand, Ed on the other hand...He's bitter about that man, enough to only call him by his name."

It was a disheartening statement to hear. Being raised to value and love your family was an unspoken teaching in Jeanne's home. She couldn't fathom how it would be to hate a family member. However, she understood that such feelings exist in the hearts of others, and sadly, they can be justified to the point where families may actually harm someone of their own blood.

"He's not a bad man in reality," Pinako spoke of the disappearing father. "Quiet sometimes, but I knew he loved his family. He never said why he left, but after knowing him for a long time, it was probably for a good reason, no matter how much Ed will deny it."

So it could have been with good reasons, yet by the sound of it, no matter what the reason may be, Edward has built a deep, long-lasting resentment towards his father.

"What of Winry's parents?" Armstrong asked, "Where are they?"

Jeanne's head lowers as Pinako takes one long take of her pipe, like a river breathed out before they became clouds, she answered in an almost empty tone, "They both died during the civil war."

The Major grew very, very quiet.

"Winry told me that they were doctors who were sent to help the wounded."

Pinako nodded to Jeanne, confirming, "Yes. Surgeons - my son and his wife. There was never enough doctors for all the injured soldiers. They had to take those from small towns like this one."

"...It was an awful war," Armstrong said.

"Indeed it was."

The Ishvalan War, Jeanne had only caught a glimpse of information about this event during her summoning. Simply put, two sides of the same country had lashed out against each other, and the Ishvalans suffered a horrendous loss, but that was the generalization. Her summoning can only give her the essential data, enough to help her understand this world's system, but not everything is within her knowledge and she does not know the whole story. She at least knew what war is, she has been through it and is currently in one, and there's no debating for what it was.

Warriors may find glory in it, Kings may reason it's necessity, and innocents in the crossfire, most definitely, thought of it only as hell.

...A low, prominent grumble disrupted the solemn mood of the two people. Startled, Pinako and Armstrong looks to the source, finding Jeanne with embarrassment coloring her features. Her hands over her stomach that refused to be neglected any longer. "I'm...so sorry."

Quirking a smile, Pinako steps down from her chair, "It's about time for supper anyway. By the looks of you," she points to Alex, "And the sound of you," Jeanne's shame darkens, "You two could eat a lot. Luckily, there'll be plenty enough food for the both of you."

"Oh, there's no need to trouble yourself," though Armstrong most certainly would rather have Jeanne eat before he could.

Pinako simply refused his refusal, "Food is always at its best when there's guest around. There's also enough beds we use for patients for you two to take."

She lets out another smoke as she looks to a certain direction, "The boys don't have anywhere else to stay but here. Adding a few more guests won't be too much trouble for us."

"Nowhere else? Don't they have their house here?" Jeanne asked. If this is where the brothers grew up in, then what about the place they originally lived?

"It's gone," the old woman answers, "On the day Edward gained his State Certification, they burned down their house, so that there would be no home to think of," thus, no way to pull the brothers back from completing their quest.

"They...burned it down?" The Holy Maiden was appalled along with Armstrong. A home is supposed to be a sanctuary where the happiest memories live, a place one can go to, return to for rest and comfort. For someone to destroy all that willingly so that nothing will hold them back, it was by far the most saddest thing she has ever heard. "They didn't burn everything, did they?"

"They managed to save a few things important for their trip, but for the majority of it; family pictures, personal belongings. Everything. Those boys want nothing to look back to if they wish to keep moving forward."

The great extent the Elric brothers will go to ensure that they will seek for restoration without fault so clear cut. An absolute devotion to find the Philosopher's Stone; by leaving behind the materials of a hundred personal memories in ashes, as well the place of their sins.

Jeanne looks to where the rest of the town can be seen, with tender eyes searching for the Alchemist who seems to carry the whole world on his shoulders, and her heart grew even heavier.

* * *

Hesitant steps climbs the hill for the top, where a place that was once his home lies untouched for so long now. Reaching there, all Edward saw were the charred remains of the house he and his brother grew up in. Scorched woods all over, ashes covering the ground, and under it all, _she_ lies there. He had already paid a visit to the grave, but this place can be considered one as well.

He cannot see the body, but he knows that she is there, buried underneath the remnants of their precious memories as her gravestone. Their own mother whom they had forced to come back, and he alone watched her suffer and die a second time. A harrowing thing. They were the ones who put her through all that, _he_ was the one who put their deceased mother in immense pain again.

It was agreed that neither brother would return here, that there was nothing left for them to go back to, so then why was Edward here? To remind himself? To punish himself? He didn't even know. He just had to see this place once time, and he is sure he'll not come back to it again.

A faint itch twitched his left hand takes his eyes away from the scene, he looks to his glove, and remembered what is insistently apparent, purposefully hiding it from Winry and Pinako to not bring them any worries or questions that he will find it a challenge to answer.

What remains constant were the red marks underneath his glove; the Command Seals. A ticket to the most ridiculous, but undoubtedly happening event.

Back in East City, Roy questioned the brothers what they thought of it all: The Holy Grail War, the Servants, and lastly; The Holy Grail. Thinking it over, the brothers answered honestly: they didn't know what to make of it yet. Edward could hardly believe it, but after what he survived from and what he had seen, it was hard to deny it.

His mind travels to the prize of this competition. Was it possible that the Holy Grail is just another name for the Philosopher's Stone? Or could this wish-granting object truly be what it's said to be, accomplishing miracles that opposes science? While he still held on to his cynical doubts, these were the thoughts that constantly persisted, intruding through dangerous territories that challenges his world-view as he speculates more and more.

There wasn't any personal interest in obtaining the Grail, now that he has the lead he's been looking for. Marcoh's fear and attempt to dissuade the brothers was not unheard, and Edward could only question Jeanne why she believes that they shouldn't pursue the stone. Their worded oppositions only led him to persistently try and uncover just what it was that made this stone the work of the devil? What made Jeanne worry and the doctor afraid? It was the same curiosity for the Grail. If it could do what is said it could do, then he wants to know how.

But he has already made up his mind that he will not take part in this war, to kill for some promised 'miracle' that may not even be so, and until he settles with the lead he has now and so close to, he'll only get side-tracked by this one.

As for these Servants, even if it is possible to transmute the body of the deceased into a complete functional copy, granted with strange abilities and physical strength, nothing would ever move him into performing this summoning, even if it would prove that everything about this war is legitimate, his mind is glued to where he stands; he will not perform it, not with the trauma he suffered, and the evidence of his try that was remotely like these summoning lies beneath the ruins of his home.

Narrowing his eyes at the hidden Command Seals as if it was the epitome of his great dislike, just as he would in the face of _that man_ , he made a brisk turn and walks back down the hill. Not a second glance was spared for the destroyed remnants of his past.

When Edward returned to the Rockbell's house, he was pulled into a bear hug and against the bare chest of Alex Armstrong without warning. Tears fall from the emotional man as he express his moved heart over the tragedy the brothers have suffered through, ignoring the struggle and Edward's yell to be released.

Jeanne and Pinako stood aside, watching the scene that lightens the heart. Though for Jeanne, there was the urge to say something, and it left her with a troubled expression.

They managed to calm the Major down, and in the next moment, dinner is served. The well-cooked meals satisfied the hungered visitors as Alphonse remains outside. The armor Alchemist watches the sun set and the gradual change in the sky as night came to Resembool. Everyone in town prepared themselves for slumber, and for those within the Rockbell's house, only one shall remain diligent to start her work, while the rest settles into their beds.

The Fullmetal Alchemist was ready for sleep. Hopefully, it will be one that would not haunt him with nightmares, a terrible show in his mind centering around his guilt, and if he has it again, it will most likely be due to his immense worry for the missing Nina. Thinking of her, he was once again filled with restlessness, and he shares this feeling, unknowingly so, with his younger brother as Alphonse looks to the night sky.

Their thoughts were plagued with Nina. Was she safe? Where was she now? Will anyone find her in time before something happens to her?

Edward even considered along with Alphonse that after he gets his new arm and leg, the brothers can return to East City and help look for her. They wanted to be part of the search right away, but Roy pushed them to leave seeking for Nina to him and his team, and even Armstrong insisted that they should not stray from what they were so close to getting, what everyone looks forward for them to retrieve, and to trust Roy that he will find the little girl. The Fullmetal Alchemist's heart had beaten with such deep confliction, it almost hurt - and he's sure it isn't just because of the wound.

Eventually, the brothers came to a decision. They will seek Marcoh's notes for the Philosopher's Stone, and whatever they uncover, taking the doctor's warning but will bravely read through it, if there is a chance for the brothers to create the stone, they will use it to regain their bodies, and then...

They will use it to heal Nina, to undo the injustice she has endured. It may seem impossible really, but maybe the stone could have what it takes to help her. Edward and Alphonse are willing to postpone their celebration of their regained bodies for the sake of the little girl. They not only want to help their friend, but were obligated to. The brothers have committed a taboo, and paid the price for it. Nina however didn't do anything wrong, she didn't deserve what was done to her. She was innocent, and they have to help her.

With this invigoration to their spirit, they became restless beyond control, desiring to reach Central City sooner than it is possible.

Opposite to the brothers eagerness, in another room, Jeanne sighs tiredly as she feels the comfort of the mattress on her back. The day was spent rather peacefully, and such a change was welcomed after everything that has happened. Times like this are always important to regain the energy and enthusiasm for tomorrow, and finally, Jeanne will receive what was so long needed. What little rest she obtained from the train ride, she will now have plenty tonight.

But as she allows her body to relax, her mind drifts to the story Pinako has told her. At such a young age, the Elrics have endured such hardships that it was a wonder how they still look to the road ahead, defining their strong will as study as steel. Like those who have lived before and after her time, they were people who dealt with equal if not worse circumstances that led them to becoming the commonly known as heroes. Knowing this, it left her worried what challenges the brothers will inevitably face, like watching an epic unfold.

And like how many who may heard a whisper of their tale, she truly prays for their success, and the sense to look after them grew all the more stronger, more so her interest to know them better, to understand and support. A feeling she shares with Rose.

It was so difficult to watch, however, as they continue their journey with the belief that the Philosopher's Stone is the key to their Restoration, oblivious to it's makings. Could she truly keep this quiet for long? This question often submerged, a great yet minor concern. For although what they will discover is truly awful, her other worries lies on the fact that if the brothers were to uncover the doctor's research notes, what will happen then? If Marcoh who has worked for the military was forced to conduct this stone by orders, then how far does this dark secret goes? Will the brothers be entangled with whatever dark secrets is buried within this country?

What is a Ruler Servant to do? In a world that was not hers, unknown enemies that does not personally come in the way of her duty, and despite it all, she is to continue her focus solely on the war?

A prayer left her lips for what untold future awaits her, and her eyes closed as she fell quickly to sleep. The internal struggle swirling within her resumes it's presence, even in her dreams.

* * *

The roosters sung like an alarm clock as the edge of the sun rises from the horizon, Edward awoke abruptly not by this sound however, it was the sound of a project in the works made of mechanical parts. He left his room and walks down the hallway, feeling a thirst for ice-cold water that could do to wake his senses more. Ahead of him, there was a door slightly ajar, orange hue illuminates through the opening.

Edward knew that this is where Winry is currently working on his automails; her workshop. He enters the room without a word. Just as he suspected, his gear head of a friend is immersed in her work, hardly noticing the creak of the door.

"Look at you at work," said Edward, smirking.

"Been up all night," a faint sound of tiredness seeps through, but hardly inclined to stop for rest, Winry proceeds with her work.

Wondering how far she's begun, Edward comes closer and peeks over her shoulders. Watching her mend a piece of metal through the use of a contraption that pierces through with increasing heat. She did not look up to note Edward observing her, ignoring him, and that was normal. Entirely focused in this passion of hers, there was nothing else that can get her so eager and so dedicated than building automails. It was always something Edward found to be interesting and weird at the same time.

When it became clear that she will continue to ignore his presence, at least until Edward started prodding some of her things which prompts her to kick him out, Edward resumes his way. He walks into the living room to reach the kitchen, but stopped. Another person was in the room, an easily recognizable figure.

She knelt before a window where the morning sky faintly lights through the glass, her hands clasped together. A white dress she wore as her sleepwear, and her untied blonde hair fell over her back. In a deep prayer, she gave no indication hearing Edward come in.

His memory takes him back to Liore, and the first time he met this familiar sight of the faithful girl.

Jeanne seemed to be like any girl, but ever since that day he met her and now, Edward had an instinct suspicion that she was...off somehow. Out of place almost. Like someone separated from the rest of the world, and it intensified with how she is now, leaving this reality momentarily as she prays.

...Unbelievable. He's thinking in a way that accepts the idea that these warriors - including the one who pierced his heart - really are from another dimension. He can handle the idea of a cult-driven war between super-powered humans of unclear abilities, fighting over a possibly non-mythical wish-granting device. The only line he'll stand behind, hesitant if only never to cross, are dimension hopping reincarnated warriors. Not entirely reincarnated as Jeanne has explicitly stated, but it hardly makes it any more believable.

And apparently, she's one of these Servants. She said so as they were under fire from an Archer back in East City, and thinking back, had claimed to be so when up against the Lancer who nearly killed Edward. Naturally, the young Alchemist would like to start questioning her, a start that maybe he can figure out who she really is.

Nothing about her makes any sense to him. The qualities about her contradicts what the brothers have gathered in Liore, from people who claimed to have known her personally, but referred to her with a different name, even that fake priest did, and she was said to have accepted Letoism all for the return of her deceased loved one, a common situation in finding comfort in desperate hope rather than accept the reality and rely her own inner strength.

Edward grimaced when he thought of this, nothing less sad to acknowledge, but there was something else to realize, remembering a certain statement he had loudly worded in Marcoh's home. It wasn't something that came to him now, Edward had already understood that he may have come too crossed. Even Armstrong and Alphonse told him that he let his temper get the best of himself. He never meant to, but his angry spout covered a sensitive issue.

Even if this girl did not experience the sort of trauma the Elric brothers have endured, that does not mean she did not know loss and desperation. Surely, as Rose Thomas who lost her parents and lover, she would relate that much, enough for her to cling onto the lies of a conman. A blindly hopeful girl who never asked questions, to follow whoever promises her a miracle, and perhaps, someone who would be easily manipulated into picking up a gun and pull the trigger, if only hesitantly.

But that wasn't who he met.

The girl that was said to have believed in Cornello, she had admitted her doubts in his miracles when Edward asked her. When Cornello had commanded her to shoot the brothers, she not only refused, but outright called him out as a faker. No one so utterly deceived would make such a bold statement that would have gotten her killed, and to say so would mean she had lost the belief of her fiancé's return, or had seen through Cornello's tricks all along.

Why were the facts about her so different to how she was that time? With everything he's heard, Rose Thomas is an entirely different person from the girl name Jeanne. The only connection there are between them were the strength they had to their faith.

Just who is she?

There was a slight shift to her posture, and Jeanne finally acknowledges Edward's presence with a turn of her head, "Ah! Good morning, Ed." She nods to him with a faint smile, standing up.

"...Morning," Edward greeted her. A hand to his hip, "You're sure up early." He would of thought that with how exhausted she was back in East City, she would spend more hours in bed.

"Yes. I...had some trouble sleeping." Her thoughts were overrun with many things. It was a blessing itself that she obtain the hours she needed for her energy. "Did you sleep well?"

A shrug is given, "Good enough."

"Ah...that's good..."

Uncertainty swims through the deep color of her eyes. There was something else she wanted to say, but is unsure how to. Instead, she chose to diverge whatever that was in her mind to something else, to start off lightly, and wishing to settle the strained air that lingered since the village before Resembool. Most of yesterday was spent with Jeanne and Edward sleeping throughout the train-ride, and quiet, uncomfortable moments if they weren't separated from doing help around the house.

"...The Rockbells are very nice people."

Edward scoffed, but read her words sincere, "Nice isn't what I would use for that crazy gear head."

"But she obviously does care for you and Alphonse, very much," a small smile forms from Jeanne, knowing that Edward knew that much.

"Would have liked that without a wrench thrown at me every damn moment," after a pause, the Fullmetal Alchemist proceeds into the kitchen, "You want water?"

"Oh, thank you, but I can get it myself-"

"I got it. You just sit there, alright?" Edward will admit that he is not in the best state, but he refuses to show himself incapable, quickly catching Jeanne's consideration since he's without an arm.

Jeanne hesitated despite Edward already acting without her response, ending up accepting his offer while noting the hint of pride in his tone. She had always noticed the few instances of his pride showing, and that led her to wonder, _Could they ever get along?_ Their personality are best compared as Hot and Cold, it would be a trial to find common ground then.

She moves to the couch and sat upon the cushions, waiting and thinking. A minute of hearing glass clinking and water pouring, Edward comes back with one hand carrying a tray of two glasses filled with ice and water, he sat down alongside Jeanne, who thanked him after accepting the glass, "...Pinako has told me what happened to your house."

It was a touchy topic, but she wished to know how fair Edward is coping even for something that happened a few years ago.

To her surprise, Edward hummed lightly, "Yeah, I figured," he said, "Unless the Major finally lost his mind."

Smiling briefly, Jeanne then sympathetically said, "It must have been a hard thing to do."

It was more than that. After Edward took his State Certificate Exam, he and Alphonse talked about what to do with their house all the way back to Resembool. Despite what horror happened there, it still had so many wonderful memories. It was their home, the place they grew up in, they loved it.

It would have been a place that would no doubt pulled them back over and over again, until it will never let them go and they can't cope to leave it anymore. It was an incredibly difficult decision to make, but once the brothers saw everything inside, they decided it would be the last time, and together, they threw the lit match at the center of their home and around it.

Now, the brothers are all they have left to call home.

"You brothers have dealt with so many losses," she added sadly.

"It was a long time ago," Edward tries to pass it off, preventing the sympathy to linger any longer than it should. It was their decision, nothing for anyone else to be upset about except for them. "...And it's not like we were the only ones who've been through tough times."

The Maiden was surprised when he looked at her, "You would know that much, wouldn't you?"

A blink was her response. _What does he mean by_ \- oh.

He must be talking about Rose. Perhaps he remembered what Cornello in Liore had said to her when he demanded her to use the gun on the Elrics, or maybe they've talked with the people in Liore who knew Rose.

"...Yes. I do," and that wasn't simply avoid complicating things with a more precise answer. Jeanne has also face loss as any. A friend of her family passing, and even the soldiers who fought and died as she led them to battle. By this, she understands the experience.

With a scratch to his head, Edward added, "...Sorry I yelled at you before. I guess I shouldn't be so cocky that I'm the only one who've been through losses."

Grief prodded her heart and Jeanne reached with one hand for it, mentally comforting the other girl within her. "...It's alright, and I also wish to apologize to you, and Alphonse." Gently tapping her fingers against the glass, Jeanne finally said what she is really been meaning to. The Alchemist looks at her, a single eyebrow raised.

"Although your brother has told me what happened, I was still unaware just how much you two have suffered, and the length the both of you will go through to get your bodies back. I should have brought forth my concern more sensitively."

Edward saw the remorse carved in her brows, her gentle eyes shimmered lightly in the light that slowly rises from outside. He said nothing else for a moment, and it seemed as if they were back to the silent, uncomfortable moment in East City, until Edward finally spoke, "Why didn't you want me and Al to use the stone?"

"I..." Jeanne started. Recalling Marcoh's advice and reasoning, she is still quite stuck between telling him the truth, and letting him uncover the truth himself. "I...can't say."

He faces her, "Why not?"

Edward will try for patience, a feat slightly challenging for someone like him, and if he can do this much, he might as well be willing to listen whatever her answer will be for his other questions - even if they do sound insane. He accepts the fact he doesn't know everything, and Jeanne seems to know more than he could ever understand. For someone who has pulled him from death's door, he'll at least give her the benefit of the doubt.

At least until they get to her specifically, and what she means to being a Servant.

Jeanne's hands clenched together, eyes narrowed in thought of her next choice of words, and released a breath, "Dr. Marcoh was afraid for a reason, and... I worry what that would mean if you brothers use it. So I thought it best to pull you two away from it."

That was half of the truth, she does have worries for the Elric brothers when she first sensed that something was so wrong with the stone, but she is still not completely honest, and the truth will no doubt be horrific to the brothers. If she reveals what she knows of the stone now, with what she has gathered about the Fullmetal Alchemist, Edward would still resume for Central to have absolute confirmation, and even if the Elric brothers do consider her words no matter what little or no proof she had with her, they would be beyond agitated to leave Resembool at once when they can't.

It was hard, but Jeanne ultimately decided that the brothers must have these few days of peace. Sparing them the intense stress that would eventually come once they find Marcoh's notes, but better for this to happen on the day they uncover it than an extensive time.

"Whatever his reasons, you may find it in his research."

Although he wasn't satisfied with her answer, Edward takes it with a sigh. Like Jeanne says, he will just have to find out for himself when he gets to Central City.

A quiet moment passes. Not as aching, but not quite relaxed either.

"...So, about these Servants," Edward begun with his long-awaited questions, "What you said back at the station. Could they actually...destroy the entire country?"

A subtle shake to his voice as he utter those words. Jeanne immediately answers to put a calm to this troubling fact, "They are that powerful, but the Servants do not intend to bring disaster to Amestris, though I cannot claim this for all that I have yet to meet."

The Holy Grail could only be capable to summon Good-Align Heroic Spirits, and she would find reason that it is the Masters who are forcing their Servants to commit terrible deeds with the information she is given. However, having Good or Lawful alignment, or simply Neutral, does not mean the Servants will have the people's safety in mind, they may have more desire for their goals if any, hence the danger of Servants running lose.

"And their power depends on each person, but they can reach such feats. It's why the numbers that they are at this moment concerns me. That and the Masters involving innocent lives."

Edward frowns, "How are you gonna try to stop them? Or handle any of these Servants if you had to?"

"If it comes to it, I will have to fight them."

"By yourself? That didn't exactly go so well last time," he pointed out.

Jeanne would like to point out that she was fatigue at the time, but then, she wonders exactly how many Servants are there who are acting against the rules of the war. If indeed there is a team of Masters bent on destroying, then even for her privileges and great power, she is still just one Servant.

"I do have another way to combat them." At his asking, Jeanne pulls back her sleeves, the vines with it's thick leaves of her Command Seals visible, "The Seals I mentioned to you all, the power they have has a hold over their actions. They enable absolute obedience, a condition for their materialization. A Master would have three Seals per casting an order, and I have two, and they are to be used when it is absolutely necessary."

A Master could use their own Seals at the expense of freeing their Servants from Ruler's Command, but then using all two would leave the Master with one Seal, putting them in a much least favorable position and ultimately exhausting their Servant severely.

"These things _control_ those guys?" A quiet disbelief sounded through, golden eyes widening at the symbols she carries before looking to his concealed backhand. How could a small red thing have that kind of effect on those powerful warriors?

"In a sense, and only to a Servant the Master is connected with, but there may be some who can resist it to an extent." They are the ones with High Magic-Resistance, it should only take a second or even third Command Seal to ensure the order is followed through no matter the Servant's own resistance.

"...Well it doesn't change the fact that you would still be fighting them on your own." For Edward, it was a wonder itself how this one girl expects to handle a group that's out to get her, but then this would be led by a question he's been wanting to ask, "But with what I've seen, you're actually as strong as these guys."

He rests his forearms against his knees, and with a tone that held to his skeptics, he stated, "You even called yourself a Servant."

"...Yes," Jeanne answered, knowing where he is coming from, and hearing a question in coming.

"You think you can explain to me more about that?" If he had his automail, he would have crossed his arms as he waits for an answer.

With how much Edward has come to know, it is up to Jeanne to answer whatever questions Edward has so long as he has the Command Seals. To lecture him so that he will know the importance of revoking those Seals for his own safety. However, whether this means she is to inform him everything, even her own unique situation...

That is entirely up to her.

Jeanne considered with a brief pause, and answered, "I am a Servant," she said honestly. Edward kept to his stern expression, a willingness to listen, but a subtle brief hint of shock.

"All Servants have a class that defines their methods of fighting. In total of these classes, there should only be seven; Saber: Hero of the Sword, Lancer: Hero of the Spear, Archer: Hero of the Bow, Rider: Hero of the Mount, Caster: Hero of Sorcery, Assassin: Hero of Assassination, and Berserker: Hero of Mad Rage," she then revealed her class, "I am a special class where I may exist without a Master. A Ruler Class Servant. I work only by the will of the Holy Grail."

"Then you're saying you are what you said these Servants are supposed to be?" It was a statement that dares for the Holy Maiden to confirm; if she really is close to being a reincarnated warrior.

Jeanne had to consider her next response, to have her sound genuine in a way that Edward can comprehend, and came to an idea, "Can you define what a soul is?"

A pause from Edward, not expecting the seemingly random question, "...It's the manifestation of a person's existence."

She nodded, "These Servants work like that of souls, whether they are genuine or not. We arrive like matter, before manifesting into this world with a physical form. Like spirits."

Edward had to hold back his tongue to prevent another outburst of disbelief. "Is there a way you can prove you're just like them?" Edward knows these Servants aren't human, and Jeanne was able to catch up with them, but he has better time believing the possibility of an enhanced artificial human then her fantastical answer.

He thought back to the blue Lancer, "I remember seeing the bastard who stabbed me, he faded right after. Can you do something like that?"

"You must have saw him enter his Spirit Form," Jeanne said, "Servants have the ability to dematerialize, like deconstructing and constructing our bodies willfully," a short release of her breath, "But due to my arrival being unique as oppose to other Servants because of this anomaly, my circumstances prevents me from dematerializing."

Try as he might, Edward can't hold back the notion that her answer was some sort of a cop-out, "Okay... When did you learn Alchemy. Or what you call _Magecraft_?" Another memory that stuck with him after Lancer left him to die and passing out, he felt warmth surround his heart that instantly bid away most of the pain. He caught only a glimpse of her voice, and had heard her voice. Whatever Jeanne did, it was unlike anything Edward had ever seen. Science didn't seem to be her strong suit, so it was a surprise to see what she did was something _remotely_ like Alchemy. "And how come I've never heard of it?"

"The Magi prefers to keep their practices a secret, though there may be other reasons. How I was able to learn some of it was when I was chosen to be a mediator, I've received the basic knowledge of it through the Holy Grail."

"You mentioned the Grail like it's alive."

Jeanne explains, "It works like a responsive machine, able to reach out to those it perceives to be _worthy_. The three families hundreds of years ago designed it's mechanics to be that way. Like having a will of it's own."

"So it really is that Grail I have to blame for this," he looks to his hand. "...Is Magecraft something I can learn?"

"Well...possibly. A Magus will have to teach you, and from there he or she will have to see if you have the potential. I would like to explain more, but I'm actually not that well-verse in it."

As Ruler, Jeanne is given the essentials of Thaumaturgy she did not know in life to perform her duties as it is necessary when it concerns non-magus individuals. Understanding this practice as if they were familiar to her. However, when it comes to something else like a Suggestion Spell, she has trouble casting it. It may have to do with her odd summoning, exempting her from many other privileges such as entering her spirit-form like any Servant should in due to using a human body. But she could not even cast so much as a simple effective Suggestion Spell, though it really isn't much of an issue since she has her Charisma. But simply put, Jeanne is not a natural Magus to begin with, so while she can understand it, articulating it is another matter.

Or maybe the fault wasn't that she is not a Caster or her flawed summoning, but that Jeanne is a girl incapable to teach it, just as in life she was incapable of reading or writing, and more horrendously; math. Rose was able to help her cope what she lacks, but even the other girl shared Jeanne's struggle when it comes to science and other educations. She can explain to an extent, but for anyone to ask her to be some sort of a school instructor spells only for disaster. She at least understood that to be a Magus, one must activate their Magic Circuits.

Edward wasn't bothered by her answer, his questions was only a for curiosity sake, he couldn't find himself taking the term seriously - especially if it's something that has the first few letters of _Magic_ in it.

The creaks of footsteps mounting down the stairs averts their attention. It was Pinako, "Ah, good morning you two." The Maiden and Alchemist greeted back. The old woman asked how they slept, after receiving an answer that they've rested well, she walked towards the kitchen, "Think you can help me make everyone breakfast, Ed?"

The Fullmetal Alchemist wordily obliged. He preps to stand, but then another thought of a question came to him, "...You know, with everything you said, I'm still not sure what to think of it," he said to Jeanne, "And I'm still not sure about _you_. But I had to wonder..."

Jeanne patiently waited for his question.

"...Do you think the Holy Grail can really grant wishes?"

His eyes locked onto hers. A subtle sense of standing firmly with his beliefs, no matter how much he would try to consider her answer. There was a moment of thinking over Edward's question, faintly wondering the reason for it, and then the Holy Maiden answered honestly.

"Whatever wish it is given by the sole winning pair, it will activate to the best of its ability to grant it."

"And do _you_ have a wish?"

There wasn't the slightest second of hesitation, "No. There isn't a wish I have for the Holy Grail."

Not only is it one of the factors to being a Ruler Servant: to not have a wish, Jeanne genuinely does not have any personal interest in the Holy Grail. Even if it's to avert her tragic end, she did not think of it. If she is to ever have one wish, it would be for the Holy Grail War to commence properly.

Edward eyed her for another moment, and stood up to go answer Pinako's request.

His reactions appears to dictate that he found whatever he was searching for in her answer, and if there _is_ something, it's that he saw Jeanne not to be someone who intends to make a desperate change, or expecting the unlikely to happen. He would have thought she would take advantage of this Holy Grail War if _Rose Thomas_ wanted to bring her lover back to life, maybe she really has come to pass the grief she had for her losses.

Or maybe it was some kind of coping mechanism. That if she were a different person, she would not suffer the grief of Rose.

He left the room without being anywhere close to figuring out who Jeanne D'Arc really is.

* * *

The peace resumes for the days the group spends in the Rockbells house. During these days, all were busy with chores and other distractions. Edward and Armstrong had been a great help with maintenance and other needs to be met around the house for Pinako. Jeanne also takes a part in helping, as well voluntarily serving food and water to Winry while the engineer focused on her task, having occasional moments of small chats before she had to leave the engineer to her work.

In her spare time, the Holy Maiden found herself roaming around town, quickly recognized as a friend of Edward, and it really seemed that she became one of the townsfolk, all who took a liking to her quickly. Another moment she spent was her walking around the Rockbells house, and found Alphonse behind it.

"Hi Jeanne," he said.

"Hello Alphonse," Jeanne approached to his side. In her view, Alphonse's body was still quite damaged, barely holding itself together. "How are you?"

"Pretty good," he answered, despite appearing otherwise, "I can't wait until Winry finishes Ed's automail. How about you? Do you like Resembool so far?"

The girl smiles warmly as she takes a seat upon the grass, "It's a wonderful place," she fondly expresses.

Den appears, rounding from Alphonse's side and cautiously approaching the girl he identified to be a curious person. She offered her hand for him to sniff, and the dog warm up to her fast, letting her scratch under his chin.

"The view is nice here," Jeanne comments as she looks at the distant horizon where the mountains are seen.

"You should see it when the sun rises," said Alphonse. A clank resounds in his armor as he looks down to Jeanne, "Do you have any good memories from your home?"

"Yes. My most favorite was when as a child, I would play with the other children. There weren't that many girls who would leave their house, they would spend their time playing with dolls and dress ups, but I always enjoyed going outside. I mainly connected with the other boys, and we would always do something active like running through the mud, chasing each other. It was fun." She was basically considered to be one of the boys, an absolute precious memory of hers.

"That's really nice," Alphonse genuinely said.

"What about you?" Jeanne asked, "Are there any good memories you have here?"

"A whole bunch. The best one to remember was when we visited Granny Pinako in a cold rainy day when mom was still alive. We each got a warm drink along with Winry, but Ed accidently got milk. He _really_ hates milk, so when he realized what he was drinking, he just spit it out and at Winry. She was so mad, I've never seen Ed so terrified until then."

Jeanne covered her mouth to hide the grin, joining Alphonse's laugh with a mild chuckle. Den settles comfortably on her lap, remaining there for as long as Jeanne accompanied Alphonse, sharing their childhood memories throughout the rest of the day.

Edward had told Alphonse what Jeanne said in the morning, and it left the younger brother amazed. He did empathize with his brother's suspicions, but to call her a liar would be a stretch, and he can see that although Edward wasn't entirely on board with what she says, he isn't calling her out either. After everything that's happened to Edward, they might as well be willing to consider, even if it's a lot to take in.

But the honest expression she had when she talked about her home and everything else she remembered, and the sense of longing and acceptance when he asked about her parents; as if they were far beyond her reach only she could understand, there was no doubt that she isn't making her story up, so to say she would for everything else is so unlikely no matter how it sounds.

Alphonse is starting to see what Edward meant back in Liore; Jeanne _is_ a strange girl. So much about her they can't seem to get, but even so, he likes her company anyway.

This was the routine: assisting around the house, walking around town, and becoming more familiar with those around her. From then on, Jeanne continues socializing with the Elrics - one more than happy to talk and the other continuing to eye her as if she was the strangest he has ever met. Armstrong for his nature is of great pleasant company, and it was the same for Pinako and Winry.

And the day they have been waiting for came.

"It's all done!" Winry announced the completion of Edward's automails, carrying the new arm in both of her hands.

"Finally!" Edward hurries into the house. Armstrong and Jeanne quickly follows behind.

The Fullmetal Alchemist sat on a wooden chair, his prosthetic leg removed. Pinako held to his adjusted mechanical leg while Winry held his new arm, ready to insert through the ports to connect. Edward braces himself.

"Ready?" Pinako asked, after receiving confirmation, she counted, "One."

Winry steadies the automail, "Two."

Jeanne's hands clasped together, praying for the connection of the mechanical limbs and the nerves to go smoothly. From what she has been told, it will be more than just uncomfortable.

"Three."

The Rockbells inserted the automails simultaneously with a snap. The pain is heard through Edward's teeth as he winced, his form stiffening for a minute or two. The Holy Maiden subconsciously tightens her grip, praying continuously.

The pain finally passes, and the Fullmetal Alchemist sighed in relief.

"Always the worst part every time..." he grumbled.

"Then maybe you should avoid wrecking it every now and then," with a wrench, Pinako turns a bolt in Edward's automail leg, surprising him at the sudden connection of the nerves.

"Calm down," Winry said, adjusting the arm to have the other nerves connect, "Do you want us to do this right or not?"

It was such an educational sight for Jeanne, though automails are shown to be a wonder, she also sees just how burdening it is to have them.

"It's just so amazing," Winry suddenly sighed lovingly, "The smell of the oil, the hum of the bearings, the rugged, yet amazingly beautiful form created through anatomical engineering. Ah! My automail, how wonderful you are!"

"Crazy gear head..." Edward mumbled. Winry taps his head.

"Whatever, Alchemy freak," she responded.

The process was soon done, and at Pinako's ushering, Edward stood up. The first action he did was stretch with his newly repaired automail arm, flexing his fingers into a complete close before he stretched his mechanical leg, showing the prominent change in having his automails intact.

"Well?"

Edward answers to Pinako, "Feels good. Thanks guys."

"I increased the percentage of chrome this time so it should be less prone to rusting," Winry says as she puts away her tools, "The catch is that it's not as strong, so don't try to do anything crazy."

"Hey Al! It's your turn!" Edward had already ran out through the door, no telling if he heard his friend or not.

"Hey, listen to me!" Winry shouted after him, "...Why do I even try?"

Outside, Edward had gathered all the parts needed for him to help his younger brother as everyone else gathers to watch. Jeanne was told beforehand by Alphonse how Edward will be the one to repair him using Alchemy, and as he had explained, there was a trick in constructing his form to be as it was before, so long as Edward does not ruin the blood seal inside.

One clap from Edward. Palms slams against the ground before Alphonse, and with light surrounding the younger Elric's form, at a near instant, Alphonse's armor body is repaired.

"Ready to try it out?" Edward asked for a spar.

A fist against his palm, Alphonse responds, "Yeah. Let's do it."

The brothers fought near the house, for as long until the sun sets. It is agreed that the traveling group will leave tomorrow morning. Jeanne stood outside, alongside her was Pinako, and together they watch the Elric brothers fought, a total opposite to how the brothers were before, and so it is safe to that the brother have greatly recovered.

"It'll be a lot quiet once those boys leave," Pinako said, blowing another smoke with her pipe in hand. "What do you think of them so far, Jeanne?"

"...They are strong," the girl evaluated simply.

A chuckle escapes, "That really is the best way to describe them," Pinako moves from her spot, ready to get supper started, but before she leaves, she stops to talk to Jeanne once more. "I may not know exactly your reason for traveling with the brothers, it might be as interesting as I can imagine, but you're a nice girl. It's a relief to know that the boys have a few people looking out for them."

It's not the first time Pinako has met with an interesting individual. After her first meeting with the father of the Elric brothers, it practically became a second sense to her experienced eyes to notice something peculiar about the person. "I hope you all have a safe journey."

Jeanne continues to spectate the brothers and their spar, "...Thank you."

Pinako smiles and resumes her way, leaving Jeanne to watch the Elrics until the end of their match.

Later that night, the Holy Maiden overheard a conversation between Alphonse, Pinako, and Winry. Edward had already fallen asleep at this time. Jeanne was on her way to use the restroom when she spotted Major Armstrong in the hallway, standing beside the doorway to the kitchen; very still and very silent. He noticed her quickly, and brought up a finger to his lips, ushering her to come quietly.

Jeanne came slowly, having no idea what this was about, and stopped right beside the Major. She heard voices coming from the kitchen, and together they listened in.

"Thank you. The both of you," they heard Alphonse say.

"What's with the formality?" Winry asked. "You know we're always willing to help you guys."

"I know, and so does Ed, but...you're always welcoming us like family. Brother won't admit it, but he's really grateful of everything you've done for us."

"...I can't see how any thanks is necessary," Pinako said, "You boys are welcome here anytime. Not because you're like family. You _are_ family. Never forget that you will always have a place here."

"You can always come by without us seeing to any damage you guys need fixing," said Winry, "A visit every once in a while is fine, but give us a call first before you do that. Okay?"

"...Winry...Granny Pinako..." If Alphonse could cry, he would most certainly teared up then, "Thank you...for everything..."

 _So there is a home for them to come back to_ , so thought Jeanne as she comforts the emotionally touched Major, rubbing his arm as he cried waterfalls down to his chin. A warm smile bloomed in the Maiden's features at the obvious acknowledgement of what this place was to the brothers. Yes, this is indeed home.

* * *

Morning has come, and it was time to leave.

"Don't you want to say goodbye to your friend Winry?" Major Armstrong questioned the Elrics as they walked outside of the Rockbells house, all dressed and ready to go.

Edward shrugged, "Nah, she'll just nag me. Telling me to take better care of my automail and whatever." He looks around, "Where's Jeanne?"

"She forgot something in the house," Pinako steps out. "She said it won't be too long."

"Huh. Well, there's still time until the train gets here. I guess we can wait a little." Edward supposes they could, hopefully this won't end up with her chasing after the train again.

"You boys should stop by again soon, maybe for dinner?" Pinako suggested.

"Come all the way here just for that?" Edward smirked.

The expression is returned from the old woman, "It's a nice change. For you boys and all the ruckus you bring, it makes things more lively here."

As they waited, from upstairs, Jeanne searched through Winry's bedroom, knocking first of course, and entering in search of the missing item - the irony was not lost on her that Winry had come here for the same reason. She need only to look at the bed before she found it, "Ah. There you are."

She picks up the small simple looking thing; a wooden cross. She had taken this out when she had come here to change a few days ago. It was something she made for herself to alleviate the boredom as she was waiting for a train a few cities after leaving Liore. A mere two small sticks tied together by a black string, rugged and brittle. Carrying this cross, although not necessary, it strengthens her heart, a sort of implanted familiarity she created as she continues to exist in this foreign world. It held a meaning to her, as it did when an Englishman had given her one before her time had come.

It has been an interesting, even exciting experience roaming around this new world of many intrigues, and like any earth, it has its troubles as well its complex beauty. But there have been moments where she felt rather...alienated. Keeping this cross with her steadies her focus whenever she feels too overwhelmed about being out of her element. It's not so big of an issue, she can easily cope with this, but it's the time in between her travels that led her to clutch this cross, comforted by its existence.

She leaves the bedroom, and starts for the stairs down the hall. However, a door slightly ajar catches her attention, that same door she always opens whenever she comes in to serve a meal for Winry during her busy days.

It wouldn't feel right for Jeanne to leave without saying her goodbyes and gratitude, especially to a new friend of hers. Adjusting her hold of her luggage and pocketing the wooden cross, she goes to the door. Knocking it a few times to announce her entering, there was a shuffle within the workshop, and the Holy Maiden found Winry at her desk, arms stretched as she yawned loudly.

"Oh! I'm sorry to wake you," Jeanne apologized.

"Wha...? Oh, Jeanne. You leaving already...?" Another yawn from Winry.

After a short moment, Jeanne steps further into the workshop, "I came by hoping to say goodbye, and to thank you and your grandmother for everything."

"No problem," Winry said, popping a bone from her shoulder, "It's actually been great having you here. If you're ever in Resembool again, you should stop by just to say hi." She pauses, "You're gonna hang out with Ed and Al until you get to Central right?"

"Yes."

Winry looked as if she sees a distant memory, "You know, when me, Ed and Al were kids, some boys were picking on me and I wasn't really sure what to do about it, then those brothers came by and started pummeling them. They were outnumbered and the kids were bigger than any of us, but they just acted without thought." She stands up slowly, her body still waking, "What I'm getting at is, for however long you'll be with them, be sure to reel them in if they ever do something stupid."

The trust she had in her tone was so unexpected, Jeanne was taken back, but there was an understanding to her words. Though Winry hides it well, she must have her moments of worrying for a pair of boys who might not come back for any repairs. Living an adventurous life is both wonderful, but unrelenting. Nothing is promised if something were to happen with the Elrics, yet here she is, remaining strong and in faith for the boys who may return with their bodies back.

The strength Winry had for her two close friends is an admirable thing in Jeanne's eyes. The Holy Maiden nodded, "I will. Thank you again," Jeanne bid her new friend well with a wave, gaining one in return, and she turns for the door.

A small bolt is kicked by her toe, stopping her short. Eyeing at it in surprise as it rolls an inch, Jeanne picks it up. "What do you have there?" She heard Winry tiredly asked.

"I'm not sure, is it yours?" Jeanne hands the piece to Winry. The engineer stared at the thing, blinking a few times, and a slow realization came.

"Uh oh."

"Is something wrong?" Just as Jeanne asked that, Winry shot up from her seat, surprising Jeanne as the engineer grabbed a wrench nearby and ran pass her. Calling out Edward's name. Jeanne hurries to see what was the trouble, and found herself outside with the others.

"What's got you so worked up, Winry?" Edward asked the engineer who was gasping so much.

"I...I..." She started, holding up the bolt Jeanne had picked up, "I-I totally forgot this!"

It turns out. What Jeanne had picked was very essential to Edward's automail arm.

"Thank goodness Jeanne found it! If you have left without this, your arm would have malfunctioned!"

"Wait, seriously?! What the hell Winry?!"

"Hey!" Winry shouted back, "For your information, I worked three days and nights just to get your rush order done! I wouldn't have left this out on purpose!" She was exhausted, so certainly a small mistake like this is understandable. Still, it hurt the engineer's pride that she missed something so crucial. "Look, I have it now, and that's all it should matter."

"Barely," Edward said.

"A good thing you found it, Jeanne," Pinako spoke up, walking to the side of the faithful girl. "Any missing part to an automail could bring up plenty of problems. It might have fallen apart if Edward have done something excessive, and I find it hard to imagine he would have been careful in the first place." So really, whatever complications that would occur, it would happen if Edward pushed his automail at a certain limit.

"I'm happy to have helped," said Jeanne, and she had no idea that she did. If it really was important, then it is fortunate she had found it in time.

Once Winry ties in the bolt with her wrench, and earning a complaint from Edward from the sharp pain of another nerve connecting, the engineer let's Edward go, but not before saying to both brothers, "Be sure to come back soon, okay?"

At her smile, the brothers agreed, and once everyone is certain that all is orderly and gained, they leave for the train station. Saying their goodbyes to the Rockbells who wishes for their safety and success.

"Alright, next stop: Central City!" Eagerness courses through the Fullmetal Alchemist and his younger brother, the Strong-Arm Alchemists smiles at their attitude, and conflictions prodded the heart of Jeanne, as well the stern remembrance of what else they ought to do once they get there. She will allow the brothers to find the research first before taking them to meet with the Overseer. If she wishes to fulfill her promise to Winry in keeping the brothers out of the trouble with however she remains with them, then she will most certainly do the best she can.

And once Edward has his Command Seals revoked, Jeanne will then be on her way to continue her duties as Ruler, though, if King Bradley's words are anything to go by, she will be expecting to meet someone, who will try again, to have her be part of the Amestrian Military Force. She already has her answer to them if ever she is asked for an alliance again.

The group steps aboard the train. Well-rested, well-fed, and in good condition, certainly so with the nearly forgotten bolt now intact, and less likely for Edward's automail arm to break down from beaten stress.

To think that something so little could play a prominent role for the Fullmetal Alchemist.

* * *

 **Their next destination: the center of Amestris. The source of hidden truths, and where the fate of the Elric brothers and the Holy Maiden unfolds.**

 **A/N: Phew! Finally got to finish this chapter! Sorry for the wait! I hope you all enjoyed reading! Please leave a kind and honest review! Have a blessed day!**


	7. Central City

Chapter 7: Central City

The capital of the country Amestris; Central City. Where its Command Station holds the Fuhrer's office, and where the Fuhrer himself lives. The city sidewalk occupied with residents casually pursues their everyday lives, and every few seconds a car or truck drives down the black gravel road. Far different from Resembool, it was similar to East City with its expansion easily notable; bustling with over thousands of people and noises everywhere.

This is where Jeanne will find the Overseer, to confirm where the Church truly stands in the Holy Grail War, where she may expect to meet one of the Masters from the Mage Association who is also complying with the military, and more than likely, where she will be greeted with another offer for her to join them - a sensible request given the circumstances, yet she cannot shake this off-putting feel within her that would have her accept it.

Lastly, where she will have Edward's Command Seals be taken by the Overseer, and exclude the Fullmetal Alchemist from the war for the Holy Grail, but not before they go to a place he and Alphonse have been meaning to look for. And here in this city, they found it.

"WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED HERE?!"

Or what's left of it.

The Fullmetal Alchemist had yelled as he and his equally shocked brother stood before the building where the doctor Tim Marcoh promises his research hides - the first branch of the National Central Library, the source of knowledge open to the public and with records used at times for the military. But everything in sight, their one and only lead, it was all burned to the ground.

Piles of black charred clumps scattered all over within the branch of the library, a mess of ash smothering floor. A few structures and walls remained standing, but they were in such horrible states and barely intact, a simple nudge could topple them over, yet nothing was worse as it did inside. Just as it was for what was left of the Elric brothers home, it was a graveyard of destroyed essentials.

"What in the world...?" Alex was at a lost for words. Jeanne frowned as she looked at the scene before them.

They stepped upon the rubble carefully, walking around the area with its ruined pieces and furniture. The Elric brothers dug through the pile, searching for anything that may have lived through the fire; something that could be the notes they have come to look for. But their close examination of everything only shows that whatever was left here, it could no longer be of any use or legibility.

"It's all gone..." A burned book crumbled in Edward's hands, pouring through between his fingers like sand. "There's nothing left here but ash..."

What are they supposed to do? This was the only lead they had and it's destroyed. Just when they actually have a chance, it was taken from them like some kind of cruel tease; a horrible joke.

Jeanne looked to the brothers sadly, even though she knew the truth, these brothers did not. To come at a place where they hoped to find answers and a solution to their tragic predicament, they must be so disheartened. While she would think that this might be for the best, her heart felt heavy when she saw Edward's upsetting face and Alphonse's dispirited body language.

She looked back at the ruined library, a question she shared with the three Alchemists and her confusion. What on earth happened to this place?

"Major Armstrong!"

All turned at the call from behind. Military officers have approached them, saluting to the larger man they had called to. The officer pair appeared rather young, with a man of dark blonde hair that reached his jawline, and a woman with short-cut black hair, a mole under her left eye.

"Second Lieutenant Ross and Sergeant Brosh," Major Armstrong recognized the pair. "What can we do for the both of you?"

Maria Ross answered, "An order is issued for your report to Command Center, sir."

"We'll be taking over guarding the Fullmetal Alchemist and his brother. Effective immediately," Denny Brosh relayed.

A thoughtful sound from the major, once more he looked at the destroyed branch, and then a nod, "Very well, he's all yours."

Edward was hardly as agreeable, "More babysitters? I'm getting pretty tired having someone look over my shoulders for this long. I don't need any more guards!" Now that he has his arm repaired and Alphonse in one shape again, they should be good on their own with only the exception of Jeanne just so she can lead them to the person who can get rid of the red marks on his hand.

"We still haven't found Scar, or this other man who attacked you," and if Alex remembered the details correctly, this mysterious attacker with a blue color theme is far from being an average human. The Strong-Arm Alchemist straightened his back, towering over Edward by a few inches more, "I don't want to hear anymore complaints, understand?" He ordered with a narrow gaze, daring to be challenged.

The Fullmetal Alchemist backs down with only a mumble of displeasure. Satisfied, the Major then addressed Jeanne, "You'll have to watch over him along with my subordinates," he offers his hand, "Take care, Jeanne."

Their few days spent of becoming acquainted, Jeanne shakes his hand with hopes for his well-being, "You as well, Major Armstrong." She watches the Major speak to the two officers, and leaves right after.

Denny and Maria have already been informed about Jeanne from their superiors in Command Central, but upon Ruler's brief interaction with them, it seems they thought of her as a normal girl and nothing more, nor do they sound aware of her role to the secret war happening within Amestris. Jeanne reasons that with the miraculous results that are these Servants, their nature and her own must be kept confidential no matter how close or feign it is to Human Transmutation. The stability of this world's understanding must be cared for if possible.

"Do either of you know what happened to that place?" Edward asked the officers as he, his brother and Jeanne sat in the backseat of a moving car. It was tight where the teens are due to Alphonse's size, but they were able to manage fine enough, if only slightly uncomfortable.

Denny answers from the driver's seat, "We haven't found any strong evidence, but it could have been an accident. Someone might have lit a cigar and didn't put it out right."

"You boys wanted to find something there?" Maria looked over from the passenger's seat.

"We were looking for information," Alphonse said, disappointment in his tone, "and we hoped to find it there."

Edward sighed, sharing the feeling, "Yeah, but from what we saw. Looks like everything got lost in the fire."

"Maybe not all of it," Maria grasps the brothers attention, "There's a woman who was responsible for the materials in that branch. She doesn't work there anymore, but who knows? It might help you boys with whatever you're looking for?"

It was a stretch, and Edward feels utterly unenthusiastic about it, but he suppose it's worth a shot. He wants to make sure if Marcoh's notes were actually burned in the fire, or if there is a chance that it could be somewhere else.

"Hey, sorry if this sounds intrusive," started Denny, looking into the rear-view mirror and seeing the one specific teen who stands out from the rest by size alone. "But why are you wearing armor? Doesn't it make you feel cramped in here?"

The brothers flinched, panic struck them. It was more than a few times that they were greeted with questions like these, and the Elrics always has to come up with excuses that hides the truth of Alphonse. It doesn't happen too often, and people simply accepted that this is what Alphonse wears all the time, but when the question does come up, the brothers were usually unprepared for it.

They looked to each other, mind racing in search for a decent answer to give. Their troubled hesitation so distinct that Jeanne could sense it, and she too began to worry how they will explain Alphonse's appearance without revealing that they committed an illegal act.

"...It's a hobby."

Edward's response did not do much to help them, confusing and arousing even more questions from Denny and Maria, leading the officers to wonder who exactly are these brothers. Just as the Elrics began to sweat in growing internal distress - how Alphonse could was beyond even Jeanne's level of understanding, the Holy Maiden spoke in order to help evade anymore suspicions.

"Do you know anything else about this woman who worked at the library?"

Maria's curiosity of the Elric brothers sidetracks in order to answer Jeanne, the woman informs, "Not so much. Just that she lives at an apartment with a guardian. Her place isn't too far. We should be there in a little bit."

A sigh of relief from the boys. Alphonse whispered his thanks to the Ruler Servant and she offered that it was no trouble, and throughout the ride, she hadn't noticed the few glances spared in her direction from Edward.

They arrived at the home of the ex-librarian. After receiving information from the front desk, they walked up the stairs and found her room number. Edward knocked against the wooden door, and to no one's expectation, it was moved slightly ajar by his one knock.

"Hello?" He pushes the door further, and the group came to an appalling sight.

Books, and more books, and far more books than there should be for someone's dorm, filled the entire room. Papers in-between hard covers in multiple stacks that reached the ceiling like towers, aligned against the walls of what they could only assume to be the living room; thousands of books in view. Papers and pencils piles over tables and corners, shelves overflowing with tomes and stories. Some evidence revealed that someone had at least tried to keep this home clean, yet despite the efforts, the place was its own cluttered library.

"Whoa...Is this really someone's home?" Denny asked, amazed by the number of books there are.

"So many..." Jeanne quietly gasped. The amount of books in here was overwhelming. Whoever this woman is, she clearly has some form of love - if not obsession - with reading and collecting.

"There's got to be millions of them," Edward said, reading off the titles from each few book's spines. Alphonse slowly moves around the stacks and the smaller ones near his feet, cautious of his size to avoid hitting these towers that would fall and cause a huge mess.

"Does anybody even live here?" The younger Elric wondered.

"Miss Sheska?" Maria calls out.

"Is someone there?!"

A urgent voice of a female broke through. Following it into another room, the group discovered a large pile of books in between tall shelves, a twitching hand sticks out from the bottom.

Alphonse gasped, "Someone's trapped under there!"

Without wasting a breath, they all hurried to dig through pile, "Hang on! We'll get you out!" Edward said, tossing away a tome and another. One by one, they threw the books aside, and began to see the brown hair of the trapped woman. They quicken their haste to free her when-

"I'm home Sheska!" The sound of another woman came through the front door. "Did you make dinner yet? I bought groceries just in case!" The woman of orange hair casually maneuvers around the tall stacks, her yellow dress fearlessly brushed against them. She prances to the next room with bags of food products carried in her arms, concealed by the sleeves of her mint green overcoat.

"Hm...?" She halted at her discovery of the group, and a brief pause was exchanged between them, surprised by each other's unexpected presence.

"M-Ms. Fumora? Is that you?" The one underneath the piles of books spoke.

"Sheska?!" Startled, the bags slipped from the new woman's hold, "W-wait! Who are all of you?! What have you done to my Sheska?!"

"It's alright ma'am! We're with the military!" Maria stood up to confront and calm the woman, letting the others resume their rescue of the named Sheska, until finally freeing her. The brunette, in her black turtle neck blouse and blue jeans, inhaled the air outside her avalanche of books with utter relief.

"Sheska!" Ms. Fumora ran passed Maria. She drops to her knees and enveloped Sheska in a hug, "Are you alright? Are you hurt?"

"I-I think I'm okay," said Sheska, but her brows furrowed as her hands searches the ground. Jeanne spotted a gray frame spectacles right beside the brunette's leg, and picked it up.

"Are you looking for this?" She allowed Sheska to pat around her fingers until the glasses were felt.

"Thank goodness they're not broken," she wore her glasses, and Sheska could now see her rescuers clearly, "Thank you all so much! I'm really sorry for the trouble..."

"I'm so glad you're okay, but..." The hugging friend grips the shoulders of Sheska, her eyes moist with tears that threatened to fall. "Does this mean there's no food waiting?"

...Blatant stares of disbelief shot the woman's way. Sheska however, stuttered an apology, "I-I'm so sorry! I was caught up with reading, and I accidently tripped by some books and they fell over to another stack and it all fell on top of me-!"

"What's going on here?"

A voice of another unexpected visitor, standing outside of the room. A young man with dark hair and glasses, in a student's uniform with a gray schoolbag he carries by the strap over his shoulder. The student calmly evaluated the people in front of him, looks at the books that were all over the place, and in an instant, his mind clicked with the idea of what could have happened here.

He sighed in exasperation, "Again Sheska?"

The named girl sheepishly lowered her head, "S-Sorry Isaiah…"

* * *

Tea was served by the young man name Isaiah Rioden, a friend of Sheska. Thanks were given by the ex-librarian to her rescuers while her guardian - Talia Fumora, pampers her with constant asking and worries if she is alright still. Just as everyone has their cup - Alphonse accepting one in order to make himself look less suspicious(as best as he could), they watched the male student start to scold the orange hair woman.

"I just helped clean this place last night! How could it be like this again?" He then steered his tone to Sheska, "And I told you countless times about these books, and look what keeps happening!"

"B-but you can't make me get rid of them! They're too precious to me!" said Sheska.

"It's for your own health. Honestly..." Isaiah's fingers ran through his hair, "You're supposed to be the adult here Ms. Fumora. This isn't how a teacher should be!"

"Oh don't be so uptight Isaiah," Talia waved off his words, "For the record, I understand the problem, but I can't help it if Sheska is too attached to all of this! Do you really want to do that to her?"

"Do not push this back to me, you're the one responsible for her, and she nearly suffocated because of all this!"

"G-Guys! Please don't fight!" Sheska begged, "It's my fault! If only I wasn't so clumsy and just downright awful-"

Her mouth was clamped over by Talia's hand, "Stop saying things like that! You're an amazing person!"

Isaiah pushes the brim of his glasses, "I know how much you love books, but you have to look after yourself better than this. I'm only saying this because..."

Sheska nodded, moving away Talia's hand, "I know. I know you guys care about me so much. Looking after me while mom is..."

"...Should we come back another time?" Alphonse whispered to his brother, feeling that they were somehow listening in on a personal matter, but Edward wasn't really too keen on leaving just yet. He came here for a reason.

"Anyway, let's talk about this later," Reminding herself of their guests, Talia pressed her hands together and warmly addresses the visitor, "What can we do for all of you?"

Edward starts, "Well, Ms. Fumora, we're here because we wanted to talk to someone who used to work at the library."

At the very mention of the place, a dreamy sigh arose from Sheska, "Ah...Even just the word. Such a wonderful word~"

 _Yup, another girl with an obsession_. Edward gained a distinct idea that this girl and Winry might get along.

"I love books for my entire life," Sheska explained, "Ever since I learned how to read, I never went a day without going through a couple of chapters or the entire book. That job I had was heaven!"

"That's amazing," Jeanne whispers, she could barely get through signing her own name without trials and constant errors in her life when faced with literature. Not a very particularly proud fact of hers. Thank goodness for Rose's substantial knowledge of what she originally lacked.

"Sure, until she got fired for reading too much instead of working..." So bluntly put by Isaiah.

Talia tapped him right in the head, "Don't be so mean!"

Sheska's revel for books immediately diminished at Isaiah's point, "He's right though. I thought that job would be perfect for me, but I guess I'll always be-"

"Don't you say it!" Talia immediately shushed her, "Really Sheska, you give yourself too little credit. You know you have an incredible passion!"

"But I lost another job. If I don't find one and stick with it, there's no way I can help pay the hospital bills for my mother."

A hand covers Sheska reassuringly as Talia spoke in a soft tone, "I already told you-"

But the book-lover shook her head, "I know, and I'm forever grateful that your grandfather and Isaiah's dad has helped my mother for so long, and how all of you were so kind enough to look after me, but I can't keep relying on it. I can't keep allowing you guys make so much effort...while all I am is a burden."

"Sheska..." Concern traces in Isaiah's tone, his stern expression breaking a little.

"...Hey. I have a question."

Sheska listens, looking at the Fullmetal Alchemist as he continues, "When you worked at that library, do you remember seeing any notes written by Doctor Tim Marcoh?"

"Tim Marcoh? Let me think..." Recollection then shimmered behind her glasses, "Oh! Yes! I remember! They really stood out for me since they were shoved in book cases they didn't belong to."

"Then those notes were there..." Edward's eyes shimmers with glee at the research's existence, before they dimmed, "Which means they burned up along with the rest of that branch." Dispirited, the brothers could only sigh. Jeanne eyes them with sympathy.

"Did you wanted to read them?" Sheska asked.

Edward admits dejectedly, "Yeah, but it's gone. Nothing but ash is left there." Looks like it's another dead end. They could visit Marcoh again, but as the old doctor has shown, he wouldn't talk about his work no matter what, and they would never wish to force the old man from the village who needed him. It seems they have to start from scratch once more.

"If you want, I can write it all out for you."

The brothers perked up, "What?"

"Oh yes!" Talia happily said as if to boast for the book-lover, "Sheska has this incredible memory. Always remembering every book she's ever read word by word. I swear, she'd be one of the top students in the school I work at."

"And you occasionally take advantage of that by making her your own personal notepad and shopping list..." Isaiah adjusts his glasses as he glared accusingly at the teacher.

"Hold on! You're serious?!" The Elric brothers stood up, gazing closely at Sheska in disbelief and anticipation.

She nodded, "It'll take me a couple of days, but I can get them done for you."

How incredibly fortunate. What could have been an end that would either leave the brothers to backtrack or start all over again, here they meet a young woman who has what it takes to finally put an end to their quest.

White gloved hands shot out to shake the hands of Sheska, "Thank you bookworm! You just saved us!" Edward thanked immensely.

 _So this is how it will be_ , thought Jeanne, her face solemnly stoic.

"H-hey! Don't call her bookworm!" Isaiah's demeanor suddenly changed, his shoulders stiffened as he spoke to the golden-eye teen, "Is that anyway you say thanks? You'd be on the short-side of manners then."

The button was pushed, and Edward's temper possessed him. "WHO THE HELL ARE YOU CALLING SHORT?!" Alphonse immediately grabbed him as everyone else was taken aback by his reaction, "SAY THAT TO MY FACE AGAIN! I'LL SHOW YOU!"

Moving on instinct, Isaiah sprung from his chair and raised his arms in ready to defend himself from the sudden outburst of the shorter boy. Sheska knew this familiar fighting posture of her friend and fumbled, "D-Don't hurt them Isaiah! Remember they saved me!"

"How do you expect me _not_ to defend myself?!" Isaiah asked, "He's little but look how rabid he is now!"

"THAT'S IT! GET OVER HERE, I'M KICKING YOUR ASS!"

The demonic likeness from this boy reminds Isaiah of certain girl he knew from his school, "What is wrong with you?! I swear you're just like a tige-" Isaiah slams his hand over his mouth, but it was too late.

A slam against the table, it rattled with the point of a wooden stick on top of it, silencing and freezing everyone in the room. Threat oozes from the orange hair woman, clutching to the wooden sword she had grabbed nearby.

"Go on Isaiah. Finish that sentence..." Talia dared, a dangerously sweet smile on her delicate features, but the anger so obvious they could _feel_ it, "Weren't you about to say _Tiger_?" The infamous nickname she hates with all her heart and soul, and will attack anyone who say it around her.

Almost everyone gulped in fear, even Jeanne was startled by the silent fury this woman is emitting.

"I think you've met your match, brother," said Alphonse, quietly frightened by the woman who shares an even worse reaction to a supposedly despised word. Now calmed from the shake of sudden fear in his system, Edward quickly nodded in agreement. _Mental note: never mention Tiger around this woman._

Things alleviated soon enough, and after a rather mild awkward goodbye from the apologizing Sheska, the glaring but silent Isaiah, and the once again bubbling Talia, the group leaves the residence of the ex-librarian and her guardian.

"Well, that could have ended better," Denny said as the group stepped onto the sidewalk outside the apartment complex.

Edward snorted, his peeved attitude at the "short" comment and the embedded fright subsiding, "As if. We found just what we were looking for."

"Sheska says that it'll take her a couple of days to write down all of Doctor Marcoh's notes, so what should we do then?" Alphonse asked.

Appearing to be a spare time for all of them, Jeanne steps forth, "If there isn't anywhere else for you to do, then..."

Edward looked to his hand, where the Command Seals hide under his glove, "Right. It's about time we go meet this guy you know."

"Yes...and you haven't changed your mind?"

He almost laughed at the question, "Absolutely. No way am I getting involved in this," and with Marcoh's notes to wait for, he really can't think of anything else but that.

Jeanne nodded, a little more at ease, "Then I will lead you to him." But before she does, she spoke to the soldiers, "There are matters that the Elric brothers have to settle, have your superiors told you of this?"

"Just that we should expect you to take them somewhere," Maria answers, "Where should we drive you guys to?"

"There is a specific church we must head for," with her eyes closed, Jeanne touched upon her **Revelation** skill, "I will direct you, but once we get there, I have to ask the both of you to wait outside. It shouldn't take us too long."

The officers glanced at each other. Maria and Denny were specifically ordered to watch over the Elric brothers and protect them whenever it is necessary, but they were also told that whatever the girl name Jeanne says, they should listen. It was beyond surprising that this girl was declared by their superiors to be someone of great importance when she seems like an ordinary civilian. She actually takes their attention more than they have with the brothers, as odd as they are. It wasn't their job to question, but they can't help to wonder; who is she to the military?

They eventually nodded, with only the promise that it will not take too much time, and Jeanne agrees. Back into the vehicle, and with it's running engine as Denny takes the wheel, Jeanne began wordily leading him to their next destination, pointing to certain streets with such confidence that they would think she must have been here before.

One drive later, the Holy Maiden instructed Denny to park the car at an available spot beside the sidewalk, and once he did, she exists the car.

"This is it," she said as the others steps out to follow her.

In the middle of a large grassy area, a church of silver walls and brittle blue glass windows stood there, separated from the rest of the city buildings by having its own lot. It was smaller than the church in Liore, with many symbols of what faith this church follows in some places, a cross on the roof's top, and a statue of a figure in robe at the front of the entrance. This is no doubt the place Jeanne believes it to be; where the Overseer of the Holy Grail War should be.

"Wait here," Jeanne tells Maria and Denny. Though they were still uncertain, the soldiers listened. The Holy Maiden then ushers the brothers to follow, and they set off for the building.

"Here I was hoping we avoid a place like this after Liore," Edward said bitterly.

"How is this church you know involved with what's happening in Amestris?" Alphonse asked Jeanne.

"The Holy Church has partaken in the past few wars due to the name of the device. Like me, their priority is to ensure stability within the war. They send their own member to watch over the proceedings - the Overseer. It is his or her duty to moderate the competitors and the Servants while having the authority to make judgment based decisions should it be necessary."

If there were a competitor who has broken too many rules and caused damage that may have led to many casualties, it is within the Overseer's power to request that Master's end from the other participants or outside help, he may even give out a reward that can benefit a Master in the war once the request is completed.

"Together, with the other Masters and their company, they are responsible for meeting the necessity of the war's progression, and to ensure that no threat of it reaches the public."

It was a wonder to Alphonse that a small church like this could ever have any connection to something so extravagant as this war for a wish, and for Jeanne to know this just as amazing. "You've been here before?"

She shook her head, "This is my first time coming to this city, and I've never met the Overseer, but I'm sure that he is here. When we meet him, I want you two to go along with whatever I will say. I've been told what he looks like by members of the Church I've met during my travels, but we should still be cautious."

It was news to her that the Military has taken a part in this war, allied with the Overseer and by extension, those from the Mage Associations. Yet with their compliance hushed from the Masters she has met and the other chapels she has visited as none of them ever hinted this apparent fact, Jeanne intends to find out what is happening, if only a small portion of an entire mystery way beyond her reach to unravel. However, whatever the case, she must have her priority of removing Edward from this war come first.

The Fullmetal Alchemist looks to the entrance of the building, "Well, whoever we're supposed to meet, it better not be some crazy priest again."

* * *

The light of the sun fades through the blue glass of the church, inviting a blue glow while other sources such as candles lights the room. Two rows of wooden benches aligned towards a small stage with a path separating them. In the back of the stage beneath the glass window, a man sat in a chair with an open book in hand. This man is the Head Priest of this chapel, and the owner of the property.

He paused at a page he was about to turn. "...They're here." He closes the book. "Let us prepare ourselves them."

A shuffle in the backroom, and a discussion discloses between the hidden individuals, their voices faint through the door. Other then the two people in hiding and the priest, no one else should be in this chapel, an early closing for the day due to cleaning, an excuse the priest went with, so that whatever will unravel here, it will be private.

As owner of this church, he is often the man responsible for nearly every mass, owning a deep voice that resonates the souls of followers who have come here for some form of enlightenment, reaching them in a way that held them firmly in place, as if frozen without feeling the chill of danger. He is a...unique man so to say, and if he were to hear this, he would laugh at how very understated it was, because he understood just how _unique_ he was, and only a few have witnessed his true character.

But to the people of Central City, he is a normal priest in their eyes, eyes that could not see the darkness the lies in his heart. The evil that he is. The very meaning of a sinful man could not begin to describe him. He is no pure man, but then he would think, what man out there is without sin anyhow?

Well, what man out there is anything like himself?

The doors ahead of him opened, a girl of mostly blonde hair comes into sight, followed by a boy with hair and eyes like gold, and another covered from head to toe in armor. The priest smiles wryly as they entered, and he greeted.

"Welcome, children of God."

He stood behind the podium at the end of the chapel in their view; a tall man of dark brown hair, his outfit a black priest garb and blue sashes draped over his shoulders, golden sewn religious symbols at its ends. A long necklace around his collar with a golden cross attached to it. His brown eyes were dark, lacking the sort of shine that makes a person look alive, even though he smiles.

At the appearance of the priest, the pace in Jeanne's footsteps lessened.

"Have you come to answer a calling?" The priest added, "Or do you wish to seek enlightenment? Let it be known now that to truly obtain joy, it cannot be found anywhere, it must be created within you. By understanding yourself, you will discover your purpose given from God."

Edward didn't bother to amuse himself or the priest, "Can we skip the preaching? I've already got enough of that not so long ago. Keep on babbling and I'll end up falling asleep."

The priest inwardly smirked, "Very well, how may I help you?"

Jeanne answers, "I wish to speak with the one who runs this church."

"So it would seem. You won't have to look far then, Servant Ruler."

The brothers flinched at his knowing. "You know who I am," Jeanne calmly said.

"I was given word of your appearance from the churches you've visited days prior," An arm around his waist, the priest bowed slightly, "Greetings to you oh Saint, I am Father Kory Kotonelm; Owner of this church, and Overseer of the Fifth Holy Grail War."

He straightened his back, "Considering what I've heard happened in East City, it is fortunate that you have arrived here safely. Am I correct to assume you have brought along a Master?"

"Yes," Jeanne confirms, "He has come to relent his Seals. My request for these boys is their protection, and to reaffirm that they are not competitors in this war."

A nod from the priest, "Let me see to him then."

Jeanne ushers Edward to step forth, and he did, eyeing the Overseer warily. At Jeanne's asking, he pulled off his glove and presented the Seals.

"You wish to relinquish your title as Master?" Father Kotonelm questioned.

Edward stared at his Command Seals, "...I have a few questions I want to ask first."

Jeanne hadn't expected that, she turns to Edward with a controlled expression but was nonetheless surprise.

Father Kotonelm was unfazed, "I shall answer to my best of knowledge. What are your questions?"

"I've already been told enough about this whole Grail business, but I'm still trying to get around the idea of it," Edward's eyes narrowed, "A few things I'm curious about is who's running this war? And what are these _Mages_ trying to do?"

Jeanne had told him the main purpose that was the Grail, reaching the Root or Truth, and if that goal remains with whoever is part of this war, then what are they planning to do with it? And if they have something else in mind, what else could they do with this said to be miraculous device? Could it really be that powerful as a Philosopher's Stone? Greater even?

With his lightless eyes, Kotonelm evaluated the boy. In the priest's years of observing people and how much he is separated from their normality: what they find happiness in, and what they cry for, he was able to assess the kind of person they were, and so was able to do the same with this young man. His conclusion; this is a boy who only understood and accepts the law of science, of Alchemy. It wasn't surprising, anyone not within the Mage Society would rather avoid understanding what incredible feats have been uncovered, instead they would prefer rejecting it, and while he can assume this boy must have indeed rejected the idea such as the Holy Grail War, he realized that there was a notion of curiosity that dwells within the Alchemist's skepticism.

From his previous statement, Kotonelm had thought this boy to be a doubter, but from these questions, he came to another understanding. This is a boy with both bite and bark, sensible enough to distrust even the priest by the subtle glare of his golden eyes, but decidedly not ignorant of the existence of something, even if he does not understand it. To Kory Kotonelm, he finds people like this to be very interesting, and amusing.

The Overseer pauses with a thought, "The groups involved in this war are the Magus sent from overseas, and the Holy Church that I am a part of. There is a balanced system which we each have a part in it's process, though generally it is a Magus who is directly involved in the battle ritual. Recently however, there is a new addition to this war, acting as our Intel which as of now, has yet to be officially known by my organization and the Mage's."

"Then it is true," Jeanne said, "The military is involved that much."

Kotonelm nodded, "The expansion of this war ranges beyond the seven candidates, with battles occurring all across the nation. In such conditions, I cannot perform my duties as well as I should, even with the help provided by the Holy Church and the Mage Association. Then there is the matter of the antagonist group, causing destruction anywhere as they please with Servants of their own. The both of you may have come across them in East City."

It would be difficult to say otherwise, these Servants had attempted to kill Ruler by orders of their Master. Jeanne slowly nodded while Edward silently stood by her side, looking down to his own chest in remembrance.

"This group has committed countless violations, and are responsible for incidents such as the one with the fifty Amestrian soldiers years ago."

The False Ice Trail Incident. The brothers were informed of this before their leave of East City, and hearing it again, remembering the details of what happened, they grimaced.

"The Holy Church and the Mage Association works to prevent any knowledge of the Holy Grail War leaked outside of us," said Father Kotonelm, "But the death of those soldiers was disastrous enough that it couldn't be covered, and the military's persistence with their investigations led them to my church."

At that point, denying the existence of this war would only be futile, and to try manipulating any information towards another direction was pointless with how much the Amestrian forces were able to discover. If they had continued and potentially meet one of the Servants responsible for the killings, they could not hope to combat them by any means, there would only be more unnecessary deaths that would expose the war to the entire public.

There was no other choice but to see value in allying with the Military, the scale of this war had surpassed the Holy Church and the Association's resources combined, and with the enemy group of Masters not yet known to either of them, this new alliance must be kept quiet if they wish to hold some form of advantage.

"Any wish of those part of this alliance will have to be put aside for now, the enemy group must be dealt with foremost," so told the priest.

"...I'm guessing what happens after that is an all-out debate over who gets the Grail?" Edward tucked his hands into his pockets, "This thing must really be something for people to fight over it."

"Do you doubt the Grail's omnipotence?" The Overseer questioned.

The young State Alchemist shrugs, "I'm sure it does something, but hearing that it's omnipotent gets me to wonder. As far as I know, there's not a lot of things that can be powered without Equivalent Exchange," not unless its backed up by a lot of energy, like what the Philosopher's Stone is said to do. "But how is creating a miracle or a wish possible?"

Kotonelm answered impassively, "Are you aware of the nature of these Servants? I'm sure that someone who has studied Alchemy for a great time, it is impossible to believe what these warriors are, but regardless if they are true or not, they are an existence that bypasses the laws of Alchemy, and anything else." A small smile etches his cold expression, "They are the results of reaching through the Gates of our world to the realm between realities - made possible through the Holy Grail."

The brothers were in disbelief, and looked to Jeanne whom confirmed the truth of this with a nod. Alphonse was stunned, amazed by the supernatural existence that are these Servants, of Jeanne herself! He and his brother could hardly believe it. Though Edward shares the reaction of his brother, he kept calm to bear with it all, and to hear any further explanation from Kotornelm.

It's questions like these that he could have asked Jeanne herself a day before, since she and the Overseer are generally in the same position by her description, but at the time, he was still reeling with how to go about this question, and he wanted to hear the answer from a second party for more credibility. Jeanne has been sincere as far as he's come to know her, but he wanted to make sure that it wasn't coming from a girl devoted to a fantastical idea.

Now, he knows just how serious these people are about this.

"Their arrival to this world is a miracle of its own," Kotonelm continues, "And with their strong connection to the Holy Grail, when they perish, they are consumed by the Grail, effectively powering it until it reaches the point where it will be active and takes form, responding to the sole winner's desire within it's grand ability."

"...and to use it, a bunch of these Servants have to die?" Edward's frown deepened, "So much for 'bypassing Alchemy' then, if all it takes for it to work is using the lives of these guys in exchange."

Solidifying his decision, he pulled back out his marked hand, "If all I'm going for is fighting against the undead and killing for some promised wish, then I want nothing to do with your war," with another objective at hand that prompts this Holy Grail to be an unnecessary essential - whether it's powers are as true as this priest and Jeanne has said, he certainly won't allow himself to follow some cup's demands for him to kill. He will gladly rid of this Seals and be out of this mess of claimed miracles and warriors from another dimension.

Kotonelm voiced his understanding, "Then I here by revoke your title as Master." His hand hovers over Edward's, and a red glow ignites beneath his palm. A startling effect of a tingling prickle below the knuckles of Edward, and the Seals disappeared like paper being burned. Once the glow diminished and Father Korronel retracted his hand, and together with his brother, Edward looks at his backhand. Only faint dashes of the red marks outline, the Command Seals was taken.

"If you wish for protection from the other Masters, you may stay here until the war passes," Kotonelm offered.

Edward rubs the spot where the Seals were once at. "Sorry, but we already got other plans." Albeit, there's nothing much to do than to wait until Sheska is finished with rewriting all of Marcoh's notes, but the last thing he would think to spend his time is staying at a church.

"Then I can only ask for you two to remain in Central City for the time being," the priest advises, "I have been informed that the Servants you met are possibly connected to the Masters who has been wrecking havoc towards a few villages. If they have seen you, it would be best that you are within this city's range."

Jeanne had to agree with the Overseer, "It's for your safety. Besides Scar, the Servants who saw you will likely attack even if you are no longer a Master. It would be best to stay low in Central for a while, or depending on what your superiors will say." With her duty inclining towards the war now that she has fulfilled her objective in bringing Edward here, she can only trust that the military, by word of their Fuhrer, that the Elric brothers will be protected in some way once she leaves.

"Getting pretty sick and tired of being pulled along by a leash..." muttered the state Alchemist. He looked to his brothers for his thoughts.

"Well, we might be able to stay in Central for a little while," two weeks at best if Alphonse believes that reading Marcoh's formula will be a lengthy one, and to understand it takes time.

"It is your choice. The church will welcome you both at any time," said Kotonelm. "If there is nothing else, I would like to discuss with Ruler alone."

With Edward no longer entangled with the affairs of the Holy Grail, any talk of the war will be out of his earshot just as it would to avoid any citizen from hearing it. Jeanne understood this, and turned to the brothers, "You both go on ahead, and inform the officers that I will be staying here for a moment, but say no more of what we talked here."

The Elrics looked to each other, "...We'll be waiting outside." They leave with that promise, with only a brief glance spared from Edward at the priest, what his thoughts were behind this look could not be identified, perhaps some bad aftertaste from their last meeting of another man that carries the name priest - however feign it was.

Once the brothers have left, Jeanne faced the Overseer and was immediately frank with him, "Is it appropriate to meet with the Magus and his Servant now?"

So she had noticed the Servant's presence upon walking in, or perhaps the moment she had walked onto this property. Of course, any Servant would, especially a Ruler Servant.

"Indeed," He eyes the door behind him, "Come out now."

The door opens and two figures walked out. The first to show himself was a man with an appearance unlike that of any Magus who values themselves to be poise. He was of a gruff exterior, with dark sunglasses over his eyes, and long dirty blonde hair. A brown leather jacket worn over his orange shirt, with black rugged pants and boots. Claw marks on the right side of his face over the brow, he could make children or even adults run away in fear from his appearance. And on his right backhand were the Command Seals, confirming himself to be a Master.

Following him was undoubtedly his Servant, every movement of the hero a clank and shifts of his silver armor that covers his entire body, painted with red markings. Red garments as the sleeves and the fabric hanging below the waist, his helmet with horns on it's sides hid his entire head, and the sword on his back, a silver metal with red designs below the hilt and on the blade, it was a definite clue of his class; a Saber.

But the most estranged thing about the Saber, Jeanne can't read his True Name. Was it the armor that's preventing her to see? It's nothing out of the ordinary, all Servants will have unique abilities along with whatever special object they carry with them, it may even be of use as their second or third Noble Phantasm that's been embedded within their legends. Still, Jeanne would find comfort to see the face of the Hero and know who he is.

"This is one of the Masters who has agreed to cooperate with the military, and to battle against the enemy group who has destroyed a total of four villages as of now," Kotonelm says as the Master went to sit on the bench of the first row, his Servant stood beside him, "For the amount of blood they have spilled, we have dubbed them the Red Faction, and ourselves the Blue Faction."

"You are a magus?" Jeanne questioned for certainty, he looks more of a bounty hunter than a magus, though it could simply be a preference in apparel.

"Yeah. Kaere Shirigal," the man introduced himself in a rough tone. "I'm a freelancer hired by the Mage Association, and not the only one."

Kotonelm explained, "Kaere represents the other Masters of our group, the rest are currently travelling around Amestris in search of a clue for the whereabouts of the Red Faction."

The Holy Maiden's face scrunches slightly. "And his Saber?"

Kaere wordlessly signals his Servant with a tap to his head. Saber complied to his command, and removed the helmet.

The Saber revealed feminine features, yet rough and tomboyish, but not so much that it deterred the royal beauty about her. Her silky golden hair of an abrasive style tied in a ponytail, a single braid on each side of her head. She greeted Ruler with a pointed look, assessing her with emerald green eyes brilliantly shone with an existing fierce determination that may define her personality.

"One of the few Sabers we have on our side," informed Kaere. "Hasn't clashed swords with any of the Red Faction Servants just yet, but we're biding time until they make a move. She's eager to fight real soon though." His Saber merely huffed at his comment.

There was nothing surprising about the actual gender of this Servant, but two things did caught her off guard. Not only has Jeanne read the True Name of this Saber, this Servant even looks just like that Dark Knight.

This led her to the next question, "Is there another Saber among you who has battled against three Servants a few days ago?"

A 'tsk' from Saber. Her clenched fist shakes as an intense rage seethes from her with gritting teeth. Her air of immense fury practically swarmed the room, demanding blood from the described dark Servant.

"Cool it, Saber," Kaere tells his Servant. Saber's hateful glare shot his way, despising the order that refrains her right to be angry that surely wasn't inexplicable, if Saber knew very well who Jeanne was referring to.

For if the legends are truly accurate, the **Knight of Treachery's** hatred for the **King of Knights** is a fact known and recognized for centuries to come in her world. Though surely, everyone who has known King Arthur's legend, would never figured that the Servant named Mordred - the "son" of King Arthur - is actually a girl, it was just as unexpected as it was for her "father's" true identity. But even so, this is the knight who was a member of the Roundtable, led a rebellion against her father, and the one who inflicted a fatal blow to the King of Knights in the Battle of Camlann, putting an end to the legend of King Arthur along with her own life.

Kotonelm answered to Jeanne, "Yes, she is also fighting for us. The Master of that Saber was in that city where your were attacked, but due to the choice of taking caution as a priority, we could not make direct contact with you at that time, not when the Red Faction's Servants were there and their Masters hidden. It's to avoid the risk of loosing the element of surprise, or else the Red Faction will attempt to escape us too soon. In these troubling times, your assistance would be a great asset to the Blue Faction."

And here it is, what Jeanne had expected. The priest made his request, "Servant Ruler, the Fifth Holy Grail War has come to a point where it is beyond control, and with the unknown group threatening the citizens of Amestris, we request that you join our cause against the Red Faction, and to bring back order to the Grand War for the Holy Grail."

Kaere had lit a cigarette, and exhales a puff of smoke as they waited for Ruler's response. For a long moment, the room was quiet, with the Holy Maiden in deep thought. She had come here to receive an explanation from the Overseer, and she did just that, and his story aligned with Fuhrer Bradley's. If a group of possibly deranged Masters are out shedding innocent blood, then would this alliance not be the most reasonable course of action?

If there are actually more Servants other than the ones she had combated, then wouldn't joining the Blue Faction be essential to her? It would be far better than letting herself face this group alone, against those who are out for her blood, and with more help, she would be able to mediate the war and find the source of its anomaly much easier. Even a Ruler Servant could not do the amount of work to judge this absurdly grand war all on her own. To join this faction would mean that she has to break her oath of neutrality, but the reasons the Overseer has offered are enough to make an exception.

However...

"I understand the situation and how dire it is. But as a mediator of this war, I am to refrain from taking anyone's side. If your group intends to battle the Red Faction, then I must stand by and observe to ensure your fight does not exceed the boundaries of this war. But I will not ignore the issue, and I will investigate these serial attacks personally."

"You will likely be targeted again," a more than plausible fact, pointed out by Kotonelm.

"That is another matter, and I will handle what must be done when it comes to it." There was no room for anymore discussion to her choice, and for the Overseer, it would almost be heretical for him to go against this.

The priest accepted her words with a nod, "Your decision will be respected, but should you come across the Red Faction and their entirety, and you see that they are the ones responsible for the death of these villagers-"

"Then they must be dealt with at once." There was no hesitation. The murder of the people nothing to do with the war is a crime Ruler will not leave unpunished. If they do prove to be too much, she may actually return here for the Blue Faction's assistance to combat against them, but she will still not join them if they wish for her to help them win the Grail.

"If you wish to start your investigation, there is the village where the fifty Amestrian soldiers were attacked," Kotonelm suggested, "It was the first among many places a Servant's power was identified, I will bring you a map and mark the other locations should you wish to see them as well."

Jeanne will do just that then, "Do you insist that I should keep your alliance quiet from the other members and Masters?"

"Only until we confirm the identities of the Red Faction Masters. But your judgment will be trusted if you decide to do otherwise."

"Then I pray that once these culprits are found and the war resumes, you will not be judged harshly by your other members for your cooperation with the military, and that not so much blood will be spilled for what comes after." The Fullmetal Alchemist had brought up a valid point, once the Red Faction is put to an end, all there is left are the Masters from the Mage Association, the random competitors who has their desire for the Grail, and the Military who now has their attention to the Heaven's Feel Ritual.

This was the very reason why the Holy Grail War should not have been known outside of the Association and the Church. Soon, there will be the eventual conflict between the Amestrian Military, the Mage Association, and perhaps even the Holy Church should they be forced to pick a side. For that future, Jeanne prayed for the lives of all those who will be involved in the eventual war after this one.

Kotonelm smiled, "It brings an ease to the soul to be prayed for by a saint, if I'm correct to believe that it is what the Ruler Class Servants generally consist of."

He is not wrong, but Jeanne would say it again that she is no saint. She let it subside without a response, and instead, there was a question she wishes to ask, "Father Kotonelm, do you have any idea the reason for this war's strange anomaly?"

"There hasn't been any successful findings over the cause of why there are more than Seven candidates, or the Grail's inexplicable choosing of Masters."

Jeanne frowned, "What about the Grail itself? Was there any evidence of tampering? Has it shown any odd signs from receiving the many deaths of the Servants so far?"

She waited for the priest to answer, an answer that took too long to arrive. "The Grail's whereabouts are not within my knowledge."

Jeanne blinked, "What?"

The priest bowed with his head, "My apologies, I thought you were aware of this." Jeanne asked what happened, and what the priest tells left her stunned, "After the fourth war, preparation for the next Heaven's Feel have already commenced, though at the time we did not realize how soon the war was to come. It was then, when it was least expected, that a key essential of the Holy Grail was stolen - the vessel."

As Ruler, Jeanne knew how the Holy Grail functions. Though the Grail is referenced as one thing, in reality there were really two forms of it, and only one of them would be activated as a true wish-granting device; the Lesser Grail and the Greater Grail. The Lesser Grail, also known as the vessel, is the catalyst which brings forth the real Grail that is the Greater Grail. As far as she knows, the Lesser Grail takes the form of a literal cup, but it can be in any shape and size.

If ever the Lesser Grail is destroyed, then so long as the Greater Grail remains undamaged, another vessel can simply be made, but if the vessel hasn't been ruined, then whoever has it will be the first to access the Greater Grail once it was ready. A second Lesser Grail cannot be created so long as the first remains unbroken and usable.

"The Mage Association scrambled for any information to who could have taken it, even suspecting the surviving Master of the previous war, but earlier this year we had discovered the true culprit."

Kotonelm goes to take a seat on a wooden chair, "But when a retrieval team was sent to his fortress here in Amestris, they found it destroyed, the man who took the Lesser Grail was presumed dead, and the vessel still missing. It's confirmed that the Lesser Grail is still in one piece, but where it is now..."

He paused for a moment, "We can only wait until the Greater Grail activates, and we will know by then where it will be. Though, it would be problematic should it be discovered that the Red Faction has it."

...This is much more worrying than Jeanne realized, and as Kotonelm says, if the Red Faction - the group who has massacred these villages, were to possibly have hold of the Lesser Grail, who knows what they plan to do with it. Nothing better than now that Jeanne should reconsider the Blue Faction's request, but she had to see at least one of the Red Faction's Master first, and moreover...

Something still wasn't right here. It was the same feeling as before when she first met the Fuhrer, the suspicions that she is not being told everything. The clue to this was the Overseer, and him relaying all the answers Jeanne's question with a cool expression and subtle concentration, nothing that indicates any actual concerns or troubled sense to the condition of the Fifth Heaven's Feel. And it wasn't just the doubt she had for the priest's truthfulness, but rather an unknown entity of dangerous means that lurks somewhere around this building...and the rest of the city.

In this church with it's candles not enough to clear away the somewhat chilling environment, the dread of a hidden threat thickens as Jeanne gazes narrowly at the priest.

* * *

"-So how long have you guys known her?"

The Elric brothers and the two military officers stood beside the car, mildly chatting as they waited for Jeanne who remained in the church for some time now. Edward counted the days in his head before answering to Denny, "A couple of days, even counting Liore where we met her."

"She's been really nice to us and our friends back home," said Alphonse.

"I'm sure she must be a decent girl if she was able to help the both of you out," at least Maria thinks so, how else would she call someone who the boys said to have bravely defended them from Scar?

"Now I'm really curious who she is, can't you guys tell us already?" Denny prodded, he's been trying to fish for anything that tells the officers what happened inside the church they just left five minutes ago, and anything else about Jeanne.

"Hey, if your superiors didn't tell you why Jeanne's important, what makes you think we should?" Edward questioned with a raised brow. It would be a wonder if these guys would even believe the brothers if they actually decided to tell the officers.

"Have either of you guys heard any news lately?" Alphonse asked, hoping to help diverge the conversation, "Like, maybe some strange happenings?"

The vague question confused the officers, but Maria gave it some thought, "Well...we have been getting a lot of reports about some properties being destroyed late at night. A lot of trees in forests inexplicably cut down, and a few findings of meteorite impacts on fields and mountains, now those have been interesting to read about."

Denny shivers, "I hate to be hit by a rock from space just out of nowhere."

"...Meteorites huh?" Edward thought back the battle between the blue Lancer and the green hair man name Rider, then the fight between Jeanne, the one out of sight she calls Archer, that other Lancer, and that Assassin. The power they displayed, enough to carve the ground with just their feet.

"Oh! Here comes Jeanne."

They looked back at the church. Just as Denny said, Jeanne had stepped out of the front doors and walked her way to them with what looks to be a paper in her hand, a hint of concern in her furrowed brows. The group approached her halfway the lot, and called her out of her thoughts.

"You got everything you needed?" Edward asked.

"...Yes," she tucks away a folded paper into her pocket, glancing back at the church.

"So what's next?"

"I suppose nothing much else," Jeanne answered, "I've done all I can to help you, what's next for me to do is to resume my journey."

"Where are you going?" Alphonse asked her.

"There are some places I need to look into, but I need to gather supplies first." There's not a lot of money she has on her, having spend the majority through Rose's finances back in Liore, and even the other girl didn't have that much. Jeanne may be able to suffice if she avoids spending for a room at inns, but she will run out soon. There is the thought of finding a job, but it has to be something that she can work at minimum time and not a weekly pay.

She was able to do this back in Resembool, Pinako was kind enough to pay her after her help around the house, their laundry and their chicken pens. Sometimes, she would even help the neighbors, earning a little money by working on the field, or restocking the shelves with fresh food at their local store. However, in a city like this, it may not be so simple. She'll have to hope for the best chance in the next town she comes across.

"Do either of you know the nearest store I can go to?"

Edward looks at the road, "Down a couple of blocks, there's a market." He turns to his guards, "Think you guys can give her a lift?"

"Sure! We'll be happy to help," Denny says. Maria nodded along as she opens the passenger seat. Jeanne thanked them, and entered the car after Edward and Alphonse.

"What did you two talked about in there?" Edward asked in a quiet voice, Alphonse leans forth to listen in.

"Just some things I needed to confirm," at least some of it, but not enough that Jeanne honestly felt that there was so much she wanted to ask, but if her suspicion has anything to tell her, she won't find the answers in that church. "...It's nothing for you to worry about," she tells the brothers. It was her mission to follow through these worries, not theirs, now that they are not involved in the war anymore.

Edward was skeptical. Back in East City, the colonel and lieutenant told him and his brother that the military wanted to recruit Jeanne as they continue their efforts to unravel the Holy Grail War, when he asked this to Jeanne during their time in Resembool, she answered that she had to speak with the Overseer first, but was set on her choice not to join the military. He didn't understand why, and she explained that in her position she cannot take any side, and that she has to judge all groups fairly - hard to imagine a girl like her could be in charge of something like that, but then again, he's a fifteen year old State Alchemist.

"...You sure you can trust that priest?"

The question was almost unexpected for Jeanne, and what's more, she almost had an immediate answer. _I don't know..._ She thought to herself as she figures a way to answer his question.

"Because...well..."

Jeanne waited for Edward to finish, he seemed to struggle what was right to say it, and just decided to be blatant about it. He pointed at the church through the window with his thumb as the car began to move. "Did that guy not look evil to you?"

"...Huh?" Jeanne wasn't sure how to respond to that.

"I'm serious. The way he looked and smiled. It's hard to explain, but something was off with that guy. Didn't you get that kind of vibe from him, Al?"

Alphonse armored body adjusted with his uncertainty, "Uh...well...I try not to judge people on first greeting...but he did kind of made me nervous." That empty stare of his, as if the people he's looking at were nothing more than meaningless lives. If Alphonse had skin he would have felt chills.

"Right?! It's like he's clearly up to something! Honestly, with the way he looks, it wouldn't surprise me if he's the kind of guy who feeds on people's misery."

"You barely know him, Ed," Alphonse wishes his older brother could see the best in people, although it did get them out of serious trouble some times. "I doubt all priests are like Cornello, we've met a few nice ones before."

The young State Alchemist crossed his arms, slouching into his seat, "There's just something about him I don't like." And quite frankly, doesn't trust.

...Strangely enough, it helps Jeanne to know that she was not the only one who felt something was odd in the church they had just left, even though it only deepens the concerning notion that there are hidden dark secrets looming around not just the Overseer, but this alliance he has created with the military.

There are a few reasons why a Ruler Servant has come, it may be that there are abnormalities with the war, or if the Holy Church has not been acting their duties as they should, either because it was beyond their control, or that they had deliberately done something they shouldn't. With the military partaking the war all because of someone from the Holy Church approaching them and revealed the truth of the war for the Holy Grail, it seems the case for her summoning varies besides the war's expansion, among many oddities.

If the man of the cloth, the one person she would expect to trust in this war, is not telling her what she needed to know, then she can't stay here any longer than she should. Emphasizing her decision to deny joining this faction not solely due to her role, but if Tim Marcoh's fear and the truth of his research was anything to go by, whatever involvement the military has for his work, she would have to judge the Blue Faction as much as she would for the Red Faction.

Throughout the ride, with Jeanne nodding politely at Maria's start to converse and Denny's telling of having younger siblings, listening and talking to the Central soldiers, being introduced to their good and kind nature that even the Elric brothers relaxed to, the Holy Maiden sincerely hopes that whatever dark secrets there are, whoever had part in Tim Marcoh's research, it was nothing else worse beyond that, beyond the Amestrian Forces heavily trusted by the citizens and soldiers alike, and that she can be calm to believe that she is only overthinking things.

* * *

The Holy Maiden and those she came with distance themselves further from the church, and once they were far away, Kotonelm spoke to the seated Kaere, "Ruler will resume her journey alone then."

"At least we know she's around, and where she'll be heading next," Kaere drops the cigarette and steps on it. He very much hated the bitter taste of it. "As long as she has her privileges to use against the Red Faction, that'll be enough to help us."

"So you are satisfied?"

Kaere removed his sunglasses, "Yeah, we'll just be keeping an eye on her. That's all."

Red sparks swarms the top of his head and falls across his body, a dark green head of hair bloomed and drooped over his now pale face, a sinister grin. His body had changed into a leaner build with a younger, androgynous appearance, and his outfit had morphed into a two piece black clothing of a small shirt and shorts, with his feet wrapped in black fabric between his ankle and toes. From his bare skin right below his short, there lie the ouroboros tattoo on his thigh.

"You did well, Kotonelm," he says in a voice that was no longer Kaere Shirigal. His Saber glared bitterly at the true form of her Master - or at least, his most preferred form among many, many others. "I was wondering how you were going to explain about the Grail."

"I did only what I could, and I was right to say that I didn't know where your kind has hidden the vessel," said Kotonelm, "It would be a _sin_ to lie - excuse the pun."

The shape-shifter chuckled, tossing the sunglasses aside, "Still, I'm glad I got back here in time to see your performance."

"I despise having to play along with your deceitful games, Envy," his Servant talked at last. Tied to an order that prevented her from being too out-spoken when Ruler was present, Saber now freely throws spiteful words to her Master from being forced to acknowledge his folly identity. She especially hates it whenever he shape-shifts in front of her, it was always creepy.

"You should be used to it by now, Mordred."

A sign of another quarrel about to occur between these two, Kotonelm spoke in order to distract them and avoid a disastrous mess in his church, "But it seemed Ruler had suspected something was wrong. If she decided that there is more going on, there's nothing I can do to stop her. But so long as her focus remains on the war, your kind should be safe for now at least."

"The others will have that covered," said the shape-shifter, "By now their Servants should be fighting, all happening in separate places." Nothing so serious though, just enough to take Ruler's attention.

Kotonelm nodded, a Ruler Servant should be able to detect the battles of Servants even if they were miles away. If she has her suspicions over what goes on around here, she will have to ignore them if she wishes to uphold her duty to watch over the Servant battles, as she said she should.

Envy rises from the bench, "Ruler didn't accept the offer, but I'm sure Father will be pleased to hear you've got the runt's Seals."

"Yes...your family seems rather intent to ensure this boy is not involved," it was very much persisted that Kotonelm convinces the Fullmetal Alchemist to give up the Seals, the boy did the priest a service by simply relenting the marks without much fuss other than some questions, the man ought to applaud the boy's astute distrust in this war and ritual - people who simply offer their trust like giving out candies are doomed to be taken advantage of, or even more foolish, turning their backs on someone whom they have given a knife to. He certainly knows this better than anyone.

But regarding the boy, Kotonelm's 'allies' seemed very peculiar to ensure that the young State Alchemist does not partake in this war, and he was curious, but he doubts that he'll get a direct answer from these monsters and why this boy is important to them. He can understand their interest in Ruler - she has the Command Seals of every Servant summoned for this war, and these _Homunculi_ wishes to possess that power even if it means to manipulate the mediator Servant for their own gain, but their reason of interest for the boy is a secret they will not share. They would be smart to see the priest as untrusted despite the service he was able to do for them.

It certainly has been an effort, cooperating with these Homunculi for a couple of years now, without much choice other than death. It goes against his training as an Executioner, working with monsters he was meant to kill, albeit, his organization has never dealt with artificial creations like Envy and his siblings, with their nature surely nothing less than evil; as that is literally what they represent if their names are any indication, making this alliance all the more ironic...while at the same time fitting.

Very fitting, as he had once suffered a sin of jealousy at seeing other people's joy, joy that he could not share, because his happiness is not the same as theirs. At least by this, he's able to make himself amusing for Envy. The creature had figured out the priest's deformity long ago, and was fascinated by it, as if tickled by the evil residing within this supposed man of God, or that such a thing can exist within a human. As long as Kotonelm can make himself entertaining for the homunculus, he might be able to live a little longer than be replaced.

Not that he fears losing his life, he understood that the Homunculi have a goal that surely cannot be anything good, and that if he ever fails to stop them as his duty tells him to despite having no knowledge of what their plans are, it could lead to a travesty. Even so, he's intrigued to see what they intend to do, now that they have long involved themselves for the Fifth Holy Grail War.

"It's nothing for you to be concerned about," Envy dismissively says.

It sounded like a lie, but what else could Kotornelm do? "I suppose not. By the way, how was your trip?"

The shape-shifter smiled, "All well and good, just needed to tie up loose ends. Ever heard of a certain other 'priest' in Liore?"

"Ah yes, the supposed 'man of miracles.' My associates I've met during my travel a week ago have spoken about him, and their interest to start an investigation for his rumored power." Anything remotely claimed of miracles and it's expected to gain the attention of the Holy Church, just as it did for this war, "If it turns out that he's nothing more than a false figure spreading heresy or had ulterior means, he'll have to be dealt with."

"Then you'll be happy to know that he already has. Lust and Gluttony can even tell you..."

Kotonelm blinked, "...I see," the corner of his mouth pulled, "It saves me the trouble then. How amusing it is that you've done a service for the Church, Envy."

"If it's filled with people just as interesting as you are, I wouldn't mind."

Mordred merely watched as the two individuals of distinctly corrupt souls share their evil nature through talk. Her glare hardening at their increasing grins. She still does not know what their plans are - and this priest is just as clueless, but if she wasn't bounded by a Command Seal and had met these people even for a short time, she would have chosen to cut them down without hesitation.

Unfortunately, the consequence of this action would led her to disappear right after, that and her Master's damnable regenerative ability.

* * *

When Jeanne and the others arrived at the market, Edward suddenly claimed that he had somewhere to check and asked Alphonse to stay with Jeanne. Though his younger brother was curious, he'd agreed, and when the Fullmetal Alchemist walked away with Denny right beside him - of course he would never go on unguarded, Jeanne began her shopping with Alphonse and Maria.

Considerate of how much money she carries now, Jeanne made sure to buy only the necessary essentials - mainly dried food that can last longer than a couple of days, however distasteful they were, and some water. Throughout her shopping, Maria and Alphonse have been pleasant company. Jeanne was normally a quiet girl, but the officer and Alchemist have moved her to be sociable, even to the point of her saying that she wasn't from here - she came from West Jeanne decided to say. Maria had asked what Jeanne thought of Amestris so far, and though the Holy Maiden had to overcome some troubles here and there, most of her journey was spend with meeting friendly people, which have been very nice.

After Jeanne purchases all the supplies she needed, a discomfort settles in her stomach, and she immediately recognized the feeling to be hunger. Wishing to at least preserve the dried food she had already bought, she proposes a meal to dine at a nearby restaurant, which is where Edward suggested for them to regroup at.

"So Jeanne, what brings you to Amestris anyway?" Maria asked. They all sat in a white round table while waiting for the food Jeanne had already ordered - Maria had a good breakfast this morning and Alphonse merely excused that he "wasn't hungry".

Jeanne contemplated what answer to give, for Maria to ask that question only deepens the certainty that her superiors hadn't told her or Denny about Jeanne's mission, or that even their superiors weren't told. Whatever the reason, the Holy Maiden had to give an acceptable response.

"...I'm a student outside of Amestris," Jeanne said, "I came here to write an essay about the history of this country. After I met Edward and Alphonse, the military has taken an interest in what I'm writing and wished to be...involved," She doesn't like to lie, but it had to be done if she wishes to evade the truth of her arrival from people who's suspicions of there being a secret war could endanger them, furthermore, they were in public, not the most favorable place to expose anything vital for unintentional prying ears to catch.

She could have given an acceptable excuse the night she was taken in by the East City military, but it would hardly be believed that a girl in armor and a flag at hand having saved a talented State Alchemist from a powerful spearman would ever be dismissed as a simple student from outside of Amestris. She hopes for now that this story will hold up. Alphonse briefly glances at her, hearing the story she has made up for herself, and remained quiet in understanding.

"Awfully tenacious to come all the way here by yourself just for a school assignment," Maria said, honestly confused about this essay when her superiors makes it sound something more important...well, if it helps build a good face with whatever country Jeanne is from and her class, she suppose that it's somewhat understandable. "I guess your parents were okay with that?"

A smile comes its way, a mince of longing, "They have their faith in me."

 _Through her mother's tears and her father's understanding yet sad eyes, they knew, at that time, they could not sway the mind of the girl who voluntarily answers the voice of the Lord, and will not turn her back on Him, and so they placed their trust in their daughter - even if they knew what end awaits for the girl, and so did she._

Just as Jeanne received her plate of food, Edward and Denny had returned, taking a seat beside them. There wasn't much disclosure where Edward had went, he only appears to tell Alphonse quietly and the younger Elric simply nodded. For the rest of the time as Jeanne eats, they talked for a while.

"Where are you heading from here, Jeanne?" Edward asked, curious to know.

Jeanne thought for a moment. There are the villages and towns attacked by Servants she could investigate, but as of now, she's picking up the activity of Servants fighting, and this surprised her. Fighting while it was still daytime? Surely they cannot be so daring? It was also strange that the timing could not be any more perfect than now, right after she accomplished guiding the Elric brothers to the Overseer.

Despite the questionable timing, she knew she had to leave at once. Once eaten all that was on the plate with a final small bite, she answered, "I might stop by at a village near Central, and then go west."

"You have everything you need for your travel?" Denny asked. Jeanne is sure, and said as much. "Are you going to take a train? If you want, we can drive you to the station."

It is rather urgent that she goes the quickest way possible. "...I would appreciate that." When the waiter came by, she paid for her own meal, and no later did the group got back into the car and began their drive to the train station.

In five minutes, they reached the place. After parking their car and stepping out, they approached a booth and discovered that the next train Jeanne plans to take is coming in right now. With the whistle of the transportation heard in the distant, Jeanne faces the Elric brothers while the officers stood not too afar, but enough that they may not overhear the teens final talk before Jeanne departs for the train.

"I guess we'll see you later," said Alphonse, despite how extremely odd things have been this week, it was nice for the amount of time they had spend with Jeanne. He sincerely hopes for the best in her journey and safety.

"...Are you sure you're going to be okay?" Edward looked to Jeanne, his golden brows furrowed with question. "What if you're ambushed again?"

Yes. What will she do then? She thought of finding the Red Faction and look for her answers there, and if they do attack and overwhelm her, she may have to use her Command Seals, yet those are to be a limited use, and if there really were more than just the three Servants that are after her life, then even she could not think to take on so many Servants at once...

But Jeanne couldn't accept the Blue Faction's request. Nothing could sway her that promises it would be right - no matter the logic behind it, when all she felt from entering that church was an impending sense of menace, the like of it at least. She held back a sigh, her predicament giving her quite a headache, "I'll be fine," she smiled to ease their worries, "When it comes to facing them again, I will deal with it."

If she can't, she may have to meet with one of the Masters who aren't trying to kill her, and perhaps they can come to an agreement of assisting her. That was the best she can do for now, and if the push comes to shove, she may not have any other choice but to consider the Overseer and military's offer of alliance - but only out of immense necessity.

The Fullmetal Alchemist pauses, his frown still in place, and then he pulls something out from his red coat pocket. "Here, you should take this."

Jeanne takes it carefully, a curious look on her. It was an envelope, at hold, there seems to be quite a thickness inside, too much to be a simple letter. "What is this?"

"Just a little something," Edward said, "Compensation. For helping us out," and for saving his life, twice at that, maybe even three times if counting Scar, and probably more if he thought himself generous to include Jeanne defending him from the chimera in Liore and her pushing away the shotgun Marcoh would have most likely used.

For someone to pull him out of death's door more than once, he won't have it to just leave it at that without showing his gratitude if he knew there was something he could do - Equivalent Exchange, so to speak.

He'd seen her helping the neighbors back in Resembool, and heard her gentle passing comment to Pinako that the currency she earned through hard work would be enough for her to live through her travels for a while. He already figured that she's not the richest person there is, so maybe the little gift he's handing to her - something he withdraw from the bank which was where he went earlier - can help her suffice for more than just a few weeks.

"Oh! You didn't have to," Jeanne said, almost flustered.

Edward shrugs, "If you're going to be busy travelling everywhere in Amestris, trying to get any money along the way probably won't be so easy. At least you'll have something to buy food with or a place to rest, it beats having to eat ants from the ground and sleeping in a forest...trust me, I know."

That certainly sounds like there's an interesting story behind that. Still, Jeanne hesitated, "You might be right, but I don't think I could actually take-"

She opened the envelope. Through Rose's comprehension of math, she counted what was inside, and her hands shot the envelope back to Edward as if it was molten rock she had just held. "I-I-I could never accept so much!"

There was cash inside that envelope. A wallop of cash. Too much for someone to simply give it away without thought! There was enough in there for food, water, rent for shelter, and even clothing that could last her for more than a couple of months! It was far too generous! Surely she could not consider that she'll be here in this world for that long?!

"...ow..." Edward grasped the envelope he held against his chest, "Did you really had to jab that right where I was _stabbed_?" He's still healing dammit!

"AH! I'm so sorry! Are you alright?" Jeanne's hands reached out and retracted for and from the envelope she unintentionally forced back with a little too much of her own strength, wondering if she should heal away the pain she accidently inflicted.

Rubbing his shirt where his scar hides, Edward held up the envelope, "Look, this should cover your travels. Don't worry about it." It was hardly any loss. Honestly, if Edward has any complaint in how he's being paid, it's that it was too much. It's no wonder why Winry practically robs him at every visit he comes for repair, she knew that he'll always have more money later. "...You know, I still don't believe these Servants are what you say they are, and that's including you, but as far as I know, you have needs like any living being."

A rather strong, agile being with impressive skills and unknown power, he'll give her that. "So just take it, you're going to miss your train if you don't hurry."

It was a trial trying to refuse as Edward did not yield, _what a stubborn young man_ , and with the train signaling it's preparation depart by another whistle - heaven knows that she can't chase after it like last time with so many people around, Jeanne had to accept the gift. "...Thank you, Ed." She touches the envelope, and paused.

"...Edward, Alphonse. What ever you find in Marcoh's notes," she suddenly says, "Whatever is in the research, if...if it's too impossible for either of you," to impossible to commit such a crime, so long as her account of the brother's moral is truly accurate, "Don't give up. I'm sure there is a way for the both of you to find what you are looking for."

The brothers were surprised by her firm words, her expression soft and...guilt-ridden? Before either of them could question her, a man from the train called out for people to board at once.

Jeanne pockets the envelope, "I have to go now. Be safe you two."

"Uh...sure," said Alphonse, "Take care Jeanne!"

"Yeah..." Edward watched Jeanne hurry to the train, her braided sunny ponytail whipped in her hasty movement, hauling the luggage she carries without trouble. It looked as if she wanted to say something, but whether it was the fault of the time-constraint for the soon-to-depart train, or something else, he can only watch as the girl so obviously not normal boarded the transportation, repeating her words of advise in his mind.

As Jeanne takes a seat, she still sees the brothers through the window, waving their hands goodbye as she returned the gesture, a faint smile on her. _I've learned a lot about those boys..._ Were her thoughts. _I'm...glad to have known them._

Acknowledging their gentle and kind side despite how blunt Edward is, with moments between the Fullmetal Alchemist and the Holy Maiden shaky and at times rough, a sort of balance on common ground was nevertheless found. Knowing that they might get along no matter how doubtful Edward is of her truth and the connection she managed to forge with Alphonse, a light of joy emerges in her heart, Rose must be just as pleased. Should they ever meet the brothers again, Jeanne hopes it will be under non-threatening circumstances.

With a prayer leaving her lips for the Elric brothers and herself, the train steadily leaves the reach of Central City, and the duty of the Ruler Servant returns to it's original course.

* * *

 **The Elric Brothers and the Ruler Servant part ways once more. How and when will they meet again?**

 **A/N: Hello everyone! Sorry for the long wait, I've been very busy for a while. But anyway, we have the new chapter, and a new addition of characters from the Fate Series!**

 **Talia Fumora - Taiga Fujimora**

 **Isaiah Rioden - Issei Ryuudou**

 **Kory Kotonelm - Kirei Kotomine**

 **For the parallel persona of Kirei, originally his last name was going to be Korronel as a play off of Cornello's name, but I looked at it again and it didn't really feel like Kirei's alternate name, so I played with it for a while and low and behold, Kotonelm came to mind! I really liked it.**

 **If you're wondering about what's Sheska's relation with Talia and Isaiah, you'll find out in the next chapter, but basically, think of Sheska living the normal life of Shirou Emiya - minus the involvement of the Holy Grail War, that spot is taken by Edward. Of course, you would think otherwise with what happened here - things is just too crazy and quite frankly, he will not kill no matter if the Holy Grail is a genuine miracle granting machine. Same reason for when he found out the ingredients for the Philosopher's Stone. However, the Holy Grail isn't giving up on him that easily…**

 **I wasn't sure what Sheska's age was, and I looked it up but couldn't find anything, so for this fic, I made her 18. I hope it won't be a bother for a lot of you.**

 **Be ready for the next chapter, it probably won't come for a while since I really have to focus on the rest of the stories I have waiting. This new story has earned it's favoritism long enough. All I can say for what will happen in the next chapter, if my writing allows it, it will be...epic.**

 **Thank you all for your support! For over 100 Followers, Favorites, and 80 Reviews! It's incredible! Please leave a kind and honest feedback, they help me improve, but also lets me know how much people would like for me to continue! Have a blessed day!**


	8. Looming Secrets

Chapter 8: Looming Secrets

Three days have passed since Jeanne left Central. The Holy Maiden has already begun her investigation of these random attacks done by Servants; conducted by a group of Masters branded as the Red Faction. During this time, there have been no further instances of the military trying to recruit her, and not another thought was spared by the Ruler Servant to take up the Blue Faction's offer, as there had been no more attempted assassination following the East City assault on her.

She resumed without any severe delays, and resumes her role as mediator when coming across Servants fighting, a silent observer entrusted with the judgment to act if necessary. However, as her travels prolonged, there have been instances when she felt watched by the unknown, hidden eyes from a distance before they disappear with haste when she looks to their way...

As Ruler traveled, the Elric brothers and their assigned guards did whatever they could to spend their time, waiting for the day Sheska completes her copy of Marcoh's notes. They've stopped by her apartment to see how much she has written so far, and met her guardian Talia at the door. The young woman welcomed them in cheerfully, offering everyone snacks and beverages on the side, and all gathered to the living room.

When questioned about Sheska's progress, Talia informs them, "She's been working on those notes non-stop. She's so focused, she hardly comes out to eat."

"We're really sorry to ask this much." Alphonse wishes to have the research soon, but he would never want anyone to push themselves too far for it, or it will leave him with nothing but guilt.

Talia smiled, "Don't worry about it, Sheska is just happy to help. I haven't seen her this eager since she got that job at the library, and after she lost it, she just hasn't been smiling much since. It's been a difficult couple of months for her after her mother got sick, we all did the best we could to help them both. For how long we knew them, they're like family to us."

"You and Sheska aren't related?" Edward asked, his curiosity touched, as were the others.

The young woman settles further into her chair for a more comfortable position, "I knew her mother - Sharon, she was my high school teacher. When Sheska was a little girl, my friends and I used to take her mother's class for a semester. She was one of the best instructors at our school, we all took to calling her "Ms. Sharon" that stuck to this day. Sometimes she would bring Sheska along when they couldn't find a babysitter and let her stay at the school library. I would always find Sheska there, with her little nose in a book. She was so shy back then!"

It was a moment of her gushing the adorableness that is Sheska - from then and now. Such a sight would have brought immense embarrassment to the girl in discussion if she were in the room. No one chose to comment about it, only a few uncomfortably shifted in their seats while Maria and Alphonse nodded politely. It was interesting to see how a woman could have such a strong affection for someone of no blood relation, "You and Sheska seem pretty close."

Talia nodded to Maria's notion, "When work started to take most of Ms. Sharon's time, I offered to look after her daughter, even tutored her for a while. It was only when I had to attend my college courses that Sheska had to learn how to take care of herself, but our friends were always there to watch over her, willing to help whenever she needed it." A sigh escapes the young teacher, "It was a month ago when her mother got ill. Exhaustion was part of it, but we later found out it was something much worse."

When Talia heard what happened, she rushed over to the hospital, and found her old teacher bed-ridden. A gentle, kind and tired smile on the older woman's pale face, making the effort to emote reassurance that seemed to take a great toll of energy from her. And standing beside the bed was Sheska - grown and prep for a life of her own, clutching the palm of her sickly mother, the condition of her sole parent embedding the girl with such immense worries that she was close to cry.

"The medical bills were a huge problem. They didn't have enough money to check Ms. Sharon at a better hospital and afford a continuous treatment, and without an extended family, Sheska would have to do whatever she could to help her mother by herself."

Sympathy welled within the group upon hearing the struggles of Sheska and her mother. "Is that why she's been looking for work?" Denny asked, "So that she could put together enough money to pay for her mother's treatment?"

"That would have been the case," said Talia after a sip of her tea, "But my grandfather was able to help with that."

"Your grandfather?"

Answering to the male officer, Talia explained, "Along with Isaiah's father, my grandfather and Ms. Sharon knew each other as close friends. When grandfather heard about her financial trouble, he took care of it, helped her get to a better hospital, and all the medical equipment needed for her recovery had been paid for."

"Sounds like you guys have it covered."

Talia agreed with Maria, "Except Sheska couldn't handle the idea that we would be willing to pay for all their expenses. She hopes to somehow repay everything my grandfather has given. I told her that it wasn't anything to worry about at all, but she was determined to at least put in her share. With Ms. Sharon unable to attend work until her complete recovery, we all decided to help Sheska look for a job since she would still have to somehow provide for herself."

The young teacher sets down her cup on the table, "We also hoped that putting her to work would build up her confidence. A friend of mine who owns a bar was more than happy to have her. Sheska really did her best, but...it wasn't a good fit in the end."

On her first day of training, Sheska had broken nearly all of the glasses and plates she was to pick up and take to the sink, then when she tried cleaning up the mess, she tripped and broke the broom she was using and knocked over a table. It took a few more incidents of this and her breaking two bottles of their best alcohol - almost the entire shelf of it actually, that bar owner had to relieve Sheska of her duties, guiltily so. The girl accepted it with understanding, dejected and immensely apologetic.

"It's been one job hunt to another, up until the library which didn't last," her head turns to a standing framed photo on a desk, a picture of her much younger self with Sheska in her early teens, "Sheska's been like a little sister to me, to see her struggle daily just so she could show how grateful she is, or to prove that she's capable, I'm worried that she'll push herself too hard. All we ever want for her is to have a life she can enjoy and be happy."

"It's good that Sheska has a lot of people who cares about her," said Alphonse, a smile in his voice. "My brother and I know what that's like, being close to the people looking out for us."

Edward smiled at him knowingly. Together, their thoughts traveled back to Winry, Pinako, the people of Resembool, and to an extension, the people they worked with in the military. Talia observed the brothers in quiet contemplation, deciphering Alphonse' words as them having a fair share of experiencing difficult times, and the moments of relief that had come because of it.

Rather than pry, the young woman looks to the hallway, "Well, if you boys want to have a chat with Sheska, she's in her room working on those notes. If you can do me a favor, can you give this to her?" She lifted a breakfast biscuit sandwich wrapped in foil, her face softened with familial-like fondness. "She puts herself down so much, when really she's incredibly hard-working and kind. I just hope that we'll be able to find her something just so she would feel proud of herself at whatever she accomplished, I know that her mother and I feel that way."

A thoughtful hum from Edward as he sips his water. It was the moment when Talia begun telling other stories she has by memory of Sheska that the Elric brothers made their way to the ex-librarian's room. Finding the door, Edward was about to knock when he heard Isaiah's voice.

"You really should take a break, you know?" Isaiah advised. The lead of a pencil held by Sheska scribbles against the papers, constant and following a rhythm. "If you get a hand cramp, or fall asleep, you won't be finishing this anytime soon."

"You think so? I guess I can take a little break," a yawn from Sheska as she ceased writing for a moment, her chair creaks as she stretches her arms.

"What's so special about these notes anyway?" Isaiah picked up a few papers of what Sheska was able to write down, all in fine detail to the last word and drawn images, "I would have thought the military has other priorities more important than getting these recipes."

Curious to see these notes himself, Edward knocked against the wooden door, "It's us - Ed and Al."

"Come in!" Sheska welcomed them, stretching her fingers with quiet mumbles of complaints in how cramped they felt, "I've managed to write down over half of Dr. Marcoh's papers. Two more days is all I need and they'll be done by then."

"That's great to hear, just don't push yourself too much," Edward handed over the wrapped sandwich, "Talia wanted us to give you this."

"Thanks! Oh geez, I just realized I missed breakfast," Sheska adjusted her glasses as she eyes the clock on the wall, her friend dispassionately sighed at how casual her comment is. "I'll have to make it up to Ms. Fumora later."

"She hasn't stopped complaining to me about her apparent "starvation" since you've started all this," Isaiah said about Talia, "And the way she looks at me like she expects me to cook for her." Even when he was nice enough to make her something just so she would calm down, she complained that Sheska would have made something better. _Honestly, that woman..._

Alphonse walked over to the desk and glances over the neatly piled papers Sheska was able to write down - amazing how all of this was written by memory, and from a research she probably only read once! "Wow! You were able to write down so much."

"No kidding," Edward comes to Alphonse's side, "We really appreciate you doing this for us. It means a lot..."

He was getting so close, yet there were some sense of nervousness brought about by Marcoh's warning, which only strengthened his curiosity. Just what was it? What was in these notes that the doctor called it the work of evil? He'll just have to wait for the research copy's completion, to wait and see if it was possible to create something that can save his brother and Nina.

He made a call earlier this day, reaching colonel Mustang and wanting to hear any news about the whereabouts of the little girl, now chimera. To his disappointment and added worry, nothing new had been uncovered. She could be hiding out of fear, not wanting anyone to see her for what she is now, or trying to avoid the people she might think are out to hurt her. If she was left traumatized because of what her bastard father did to her, she might have some distrust to anyone she comes across. It was tormenting to think so, and he hates the idea that she might be hurt.

He has to see Marcoh's notes, the sooner he knows the secrets to making the Philosopher's Stone, the sooner he can get both his brother and Nina's bodies back, himself comes only as a second concern. For the one he is responsible for transferring into a shell of a foreign body, and for the one he failed to prevent from becoming a creature no longer human, he will right his mistake and failure.

 _Just hang on Nina, we'll help you soon..._

"If you don't mind me asking," Isaiah started, "What is it that you're looking for exactly? It must be very important."

There was caution in his tone, one that sounds not like distrust, but on guard towards the brothers, dipped in the concerns he has over a friend who chose to help them generously.

"It's for research purposes," Edward answered, careful with his answer and not too rude - he still has his grudge over a particular word Isaiah had spieled but he withheld any open bitterness. "We're hoping to have whatever was lost in the fire help us train our alchemy and become better alchemists."

Partially true, somewhat. Something like creating an item that surpasses equivalent exchange may require some better understanding of a new element the brothers will have to study for, to learn, and to know how executing the process of it's creation is done. Creating something so powerful as the Philosopher Stone is what no famous Alchemists in history has ever accomplished throughout their lifetime until Tim Marcoh showed proof of it, though that's to suggest the old doctor was the one who actually figured it out and the military made use of it. Either that, or someone else had taught him.

And this is to strip any mention of the Holy Grail. That is another matter entirely, a complicated one.

Isaiah watches the brothers quietly, and his eyes softened, losing only the barest hint of suspicions before looking back at Sheska. Edward quietly breathed out to relax. There's no point in letting anymore people to know the truth of what happened to him and his brother, better to keep it quiet and only known by a few people whom can be trusted to keep a secret, or else word of their taboo will reach Central and they'll be arrested on the spot, then there's no way either of them will have a chance to undo the scars they carry.

"I understand that completely!" Sheska beamed, "There's nothing more wonderful than to learn about the world, what you love, or interpretations of someone's thoughts through reading!"

Alphonse chuckled, "You really remind me of our friend Winry, she does automail engineering, and she's really passionate about it."

" _Obsessed_ with it," Edward corrected. "Still, the gearhead is pretty good at what she does."

"Only you really shouldn't lose sleep doing something, even if you love it," said Isaiah. "But I guess I'll have to take the blame for only inducing your hobby. I really should have known better when I told you about that opening position at the library. I did think that you couldn't help to read a few books, but you did more than a few whole shelves..." Constantly reminded whenever he comes to visit Sheska, he is always left at an awe. For her to have read every one of those books out of sheer love for them was baffling, strange, and incredible.

Sheska's shoulders slumped, "Yeah, and I blew it again." She suddenly inhaled, "But I'll keep looking! I swear I won't let you, my mom, Ms. Fumora and the others down!"

"Don't look at me for my approval," Isaiah lightly reprimanded, "It's all up to you what you want to do, just so long as you're not overdoing it, otherwise, you'll worry us all."

"R-right. I'll try not to overdo it...Thanks Isaiah."

The Elric brothers eyed the two friends sharing a nod, their bond explicit. Edward then moved his gaze down to the uniform Isaiah wore, "You guys go to the same school?"

Sheska shook her head, "My mother and Ms. Fumora worked at the school Isaiah attends, but I was homeschooled. I saw Isaiah around sometimes, but we met at a bookstore a few years ago."

Isaiah continues for her, "I was looking for a textbook to study," in martial arts to be more specific. "I bumped into her, and accidently made her drop over a dozen books. I stayed to help and we got acquainted that way."

"He offered to carry the books with me until I got home, and we've been friends since then. Isaiah would also be nice enough to offer a place at his home for some of my books when there I ran out of space in my apartment," Sheska spoke her appreciation soundly. "It's funny, his dad and my mom were friends, but me and Isaiah never properly met, but when I was little, I do remember seeing Isaiah around at the temple."

"Temple?" Edward asked.

"The Rioden Temple; it's on the outskirts of Central City," after looking to Isaiah for permission and he gave it with a nod, Sheska pulls out Central City's map from her drawer and points to the edge outside of Central City, "The temple is on this small mountain Isaiah's family has owned for generations."

"Oh yeah, I heard of this place." No wonder Edward thought Isaiah's last name sounded familiar. The temple is an area acknowledged by every citizen of Central City, a place where these monks lived and practice their spiritual beliefs. The Elric brothers have heard of this place, but unless it has any connection to what they were looking for, Edward rarely thinks to visit the place on whim. He had a feeling he wouldn't be immediately liked there for long. "You live there?"

Isaiah nodded, and here he understood that Edward and Alphonse were not locals in this city. Practically everyone in Central knew Isaiah's ties with his family's mountain. This actually reassures him by a little. "My father is the Head Monk of the temple while my brother and I tend to our duties helping him. We would allow Sheska and her mother visit occasionally since our parents were rather close."

Though he can't say the nature of Sheska's mother and his father's friendship is the same as it is between his father and Talia's grandfather. To better describe this, Raiden Fumora and the Rioden's father were competitive rivals, viciously so. It was only the presence of Sheska's mother; Sharon, that her meek yet stubborn personality managed to have a hold on the men to calm them considerably. It was a wonder what the three adult's history together was.

"You guys should go see it! Getting to the top lets you get a beautiful view of Central," Sheska recommends. "And it's such a peaceful place too, I would go there and read for a while just to be around the scenery."

"Hm. Sounds interesting," he looks to Alphonse who also voiced his similar opinion, but even if it's to spend time, Edward doubts he'll actually make a visit. Never the spiritualist, only a boy who believes in science.

After their chat, the brothers left Sheska to continue her work, followed by Isaiah. The monk-in-training bid his old friend well, Sheska tells him her hopes to see him again later before picking up her pencil, and resuming where she left off.

Closing the bedroom door behind him, Isaiah stood with the Elric brothers in the hallway. "Just so you know, we'll be paying Sheska for all her efforts," Edward tells Isaiah.

"That's good to hear then. Sometimes I worry that because of Sheska's personality and how she's always willing to help, people will take advantage of that easily."

The first time he saw Sheska was when she was a small girl, left at his father's temple out of a favor his father accepted for Sheska's mother, he would see her secluded inside a room with nothing but a book in hand and other tomes all around her. When he actually met the book-lover at that store and got to know her, it left him concerned how meek she really is. No doubt about it, she had the inner strength that makes her reliable, but a fault that makes her seem otherwise. He couldn't simply leave her then, or else there would be another accident waiting to happen.

Isaiah is known for having a dislike to many of the girls at his school, he always finds some of them pushy, scheming or troublesome, especially that Riley Tohmerson whom he swears is a demon disguised as a beloved student. It may be his celibate mindset due to his becoming a monk, had terrible experiences with women, or some other thing. Sheska, however, is only one of the few whom he truly considers to be a good person, and how he's willing to go out of his way to look after her.

It's why he was so on guard when he found these soldiers in her home, regardless of the reason, Isaiah knew when and how to act in order to ensure Sheska would be alright. He may have had his bad impression with women, but it was worse with the military. Just their presence alone would be enough to make him feel restless, and it was all the more when a friend of his has been involved.

"What you're asking her to write down, this research?" Isaiah started slowly, "It won't involve her in something dangerous, will it?"

The brothers spared a glance with one another, Edward answered, "If it was, we wouldn't want her to risk herself."

"And if she didn't want to, we would never force her," Alphonse added. No matter how desperately they wanted something, they could never live with the idea of letting someone get hurt for their own sake.

Isaiah steadily nodded, "I see...That's a relief then." He faces them fully, considering what else to say, "If I was in anyway defensive on our first meeting, you'll have to excuse me. I happen to have a couple of...less than pleasant encounters with the soldiers in this city."

"What do you mean?"

Isaiah answered to Edward, "As Sheska and I have mentioned, my family has owned that mountain for generations. However, the military has taken an interest to our property. My father had to constantly turn down all given offers that would have forced my family and the monks to move out of our temple. My brother and I have occasionally been approached by officers, thinking they could somehow trick either of us into convincing our father to give up our home."

"Do you have any idea why they want your family's mountain?" Alphonse questioned, surprised to hear this information.

Isaiah shook his head, "I assume it's to expand their army or for military advantage. Our mountain does have a view point of Central almost entirely, but we don't know what they plan to do with it exactly."

 _Unless they're looking for_ that _, if it's really believed we were responsible for that time...as if any of us would ever admit it._ Isaiah chose not to openly speak of this thought.

"Either way, we rightfully said no. It's our home, and a spiritual ground that we must take care of and respect it. To abandon it would be a betrayal to our beliefs, the monks and our ancestors." He studied the brothers briefly, "But even though my opinion of the military is strained...I can tell that you two are decent people."

Even though the shorter one eerily reminds him of that Tohmerson girl and the other one is sketchy as hell with all that armor on, he felt it right to acknowledge that these brothers meant no serious harm. "I hope that whatever Sheska is able to write down, it's what the both of you were looking for."

"...Thanks," Edward admitted, and any lingering bitterness for the "short" comment was then forgotten.

The brothers left Sheska's apartment with the officers in tow, and began their aimless ride by car throughout the city, as an idea came to stop by one of the many parks in Central, Edward decided to speak to the officers with a question, "Do you guys know about Rioden Temple?"

"Rioden Temple? Yeah, it's nearly outside Central," Maria then realized, "That boy at the apartment, his last name was Rioden, right? He must be one of the Head Monk's sons."

"Is it true that they're being pressured to move out of their home?" Alphonse asked.

The officers looked at each other, evident to their personal opinion of displeasure at this fact. "...Yeah," Denny answered, hesitantly. "During the civil war, the Rioden family had been suspected of hiding Ishvalan refugees at their temple. An investigation team had been sent and searched their home, but they haven't found any of the refugees or evidence supporting the rumors."

"It's still thought that the Rioden family had some kind of involvement with helping the Ishvalans, but without any proof and having to put their main focus on the war, the temple was left alone for a while. To be honest, if there was any evidence, I really hope they don't find it," Maria confessed.

What happened in the war was awful, and she sympathized with the Ishvalans. If the Rioden family did have a part in helping the Ishvalan civilians and soldiers escape out of Central City when the terrible order was made, she could hardly blame the people who saw the war as an injustice, and that the Rioden family were not the only group to think so.

Though she found it strange that the military has taken an interest in the Rioden Temple again, she had thought that the speculations in their aid with the Ishvalans was going to be dropped until a few years ago. What was bringing her superiors attention back to that mountain?

The brothers pondered over the officer's information. It seems that there were more reasons for the monks living in Rioden Temple to despise the Amestrian military, if not for their personal arbitration of the horrifying acts against the Ishvalans. A minute goes by and the Elrics made an agreement to change their destination to Rioden Temple, simply out of curiosity.

Reaching the only entrance up the mountain, once they climbed up the long stairs, they were greeted by a few friendly monks, with many of them semi-hostile to the man and woman in uniform much to Maria and Brosh's discomfort, and the view of Central City was certainly a sight to behold.

* * *

Two days later, they returned to Sheska.

"All done!"

A stack of hundreds of papers slams upon the table. The Elric brothers, Lieutenant Ross and Sergeant Brosh, and beside them Talia Fumora with Isaiah Rioden, all gathered in the living room to see the complete work that Sheska has accomplished within a couple of days.

"These are all the complete copies of Tim Marcoh's notes," Sheska showcases, a hint of pride in her tone much to Talia's joy. "Sorry you had to wait this long, there was quite a bit to write down."

"These are really all of it?" Edward asked, amazed to see the number of pages as he flips through them.

"...Not to discredit you," Isaiah starts, looking over the title on the first page, "But are they really correct? It doesn't look like it has anything to do with Alchemy, not the kind that I understood anyhow."

"1000 Easy Recipes Written by Tim Marcoh?" Maria's brows furrowed. "This can't be right. Did we really waited all this time just for a cookbook?"

"This is what I remember reading," Sheska promised, although nervous if perhaps there was something she did wrong. Yet no matter how she thought about it, she knew what she wrote was by perfect memory.

Edward picks up a paper, "And you're sure this is an accurate replica of everything Tim Marcoh wrote?"

"One-hundred percent positive."

Even the most trusting would somewhat doubt the notion of someone's entire work to be written down by memory - a perfect copy. But Edward smiled, "Fantastic. Thank you Sheska, you are amazing."

"I know, right?!" Talia sprung up and pulled Sheska into a hug. The brunette hardly recoiled, almost used to the display of affection her guardian and long-time companion always display, but still flushed at such an attention she felt so undeserving of. "Good job, Sheska! I'm so proud of you! Now you have time to make me dinner again!"

"Unbelievable..." Isaiah muttered about Talia's predictable thought-process.

Eager to get started at once, Edward ushered Alphonse to take the notes to the library. However, he paused for a moment, "Oh, I almost forgot."

He takes a pencil and his checkbook, wrote something down, and pulls out his State Alchemist pocket watch before tearing out the check, showing them to Maria Ross. He requested that she bring these to the nearest bank and withdraw the amount of money from his bank account and use the pocket watch for I.D. Maria accepted the request and the brothers departed out through the front door. "Thanks so much Sheska! We'll see you around!" The Fullmetal Alchemist waved goodbye as Denny follows them after.

"You see that? You really did good helping those boys out," Talia gently patted the girl's shoulder. Sheska, ever so proud of herself and so gushed with happiness, nodded mutely. "You even got paid! How much did he give?"

Maria looks at the check in hand, "Let's see..."

Isaiah watches as the women gathered to read whatever number was on the paper, and was confused when he saw them gawk and Sheska paled.

"W-W-Wait a minute, that...there shouldn't be this many zeroes, should there?" Sheska stumbled with her words. Surely this number couldn't possibly exist?

"He...must of misplaced the decimal point...somehow?" Even still, Maria had to agree with Sheska. There was just...too much!

"What kind of kid can throw money around like this?!" Talia shouted. Her grandfather would have laughed at this.

At last, Isaiah moved closer to see the check himself, and was nearly left speechless, "...I knew those guys weren't normal."

* * *

The Elric brothers settles into a private study room reserved just for them at the Central library, inside the district that was spared from the fire. Piles of notes separated into different sections were placed on the ground, and one by one, they evaluate everything on paper.

"But I don't understand," Denny expressed. "How is a cookbook going to help you guys out?"

"This isn't just a cookbook," Edward revealed. "This is all actually written in code. Alchemy is a dangerous practice when used wrongly. To protect their work, Alchemists would translate them in some way or another that only they can understand. It's up to us to decipher them. It may take a couple of weeks, or even months..."

"But we're prepared for it," enthusiasm rattled in Alphonse's armor. "We'll get right into this research however long it takes."

They have to. If not only to get back his body and his older brother's limbs, but to save Nina. The Philosopher's Stone may have what it takes to reverse the horrific effects that was done to her, if so, she could have a chance to be a little girl again. It may be too late to save her dog Alexander, but for Nina...

They'll have to try, and no matter how much time it takes or however difficult the notes are to decrypt, they will not give up. _We'll save you Nina! Just wait a while longer..._

They began right away, discussing the names and words of each "recipe" to possibly mean a scientific element or alchemy ingredient. Seeing the fierce determination in their movements and reading, Denny wonders constantly just what it is in these notes that brothers are trying to find. Something so obviously important for them to act so desperately...

He can only wait aside and let them work, wishing them the best of luck.

It was a few days later, with their bodyguards stationed outside the study room, that the brothers were nearly stranded at an impasse. "ARGH!" Edward scratched his hair incessantly. Although the brothers were able to decode some words like how Green Tea could possibly mean the Philosopher's Month; the Green Lion, Tim Marcoh was no mere Alchemist, he was brilliant enough to truly make his notes unbreakable for any careless Alchemists to never uncover, and it was a sore headache for the Elrics.

"This is harder to figure out than what we're used to..." Alphonse couldn't share the literal migraine Edward is suffering, but even he was nearing exhaustion trying to understand what these notes are hiding. He hadn't recalled this level of encryption since his father's work when they were little kids, and even then, it wasn't this difficult.

There was a knock. Taking this chance for a break to rest their minds, Edward stands up and opens the door. "Sheska?" Not only Sheska, but Talia was with her as well, greeting him with an exuberant "Hello!"

The nervous girl greeted him with a smile, "I hope I'm not bothering you guys. I just came by to thank the both of you personally. With the money you gave, I'll be able to support myself for a while now."

"We're also wondering if you boys wouldn't mind a little break and come hang out with us!" Talia offered. "There's this nice restaurant we can go together!"

"We really appreciate that," Edward said, "But there's a lot we have to cover here. Can't leave this room for long," he even asked if the officers could bring them lunches bought from the nearest grocery store.

"You sure look like you've been busy," Talia evaluated the room, seeing the notes scattered across the floor. Some little sketches and circles around certain words that were clearly made by the brothers.

"Have you found another job yet, Sheska?"

Despite Alphonse's innocent question that meant no harm, Sheska's head slumped in defeat, earning a supporting pat to her shoulder from Talia, "We're still looking, but I'm sure it won't be long now until we find the perfect job for her."

Lifted by her guardian's assurance, Sheska nodded, "I'm happy to have been any help at all to you guys. Even for such a mess like me-"

"Okay Sheska, I'll have to do some drastic measures just so I can keep you spirited," Talia patted the younger girl's head. "You're hardly a mess. You've done so much effort for your friends and family, I don't think there's anymore wonderful about you that I can think of."

"Ah! I-I really don't deserve that kind of compliment Ms. Fumora!" Sheska's face was brimming with red, embarrassed enough that she couldn't keep her hands still and clamps them together.

"Well too bad! It's the truth, and I'll remind you every time whenever you forget," the teacher pulls Sheska into yet another one of her hugs, feeling the hot temperature of Sheska's cheeks against her own, like an older sibling valuing the younger. It was a pleasant sight between people who were as close as family that brought a smile to the Elrics.

"Thank you, Ms. Fumora...Really, thank you so much," for everything Talia has done for her, Sheska will forever be grateful.

A sudden gasp of someone outside their door briskly takes their attention. "At ease. Are the Elric brothers here?" They heard a man speak to the officers, a voice that was familiar to the brothers.

Walking into the room, it was none other than Maes Hughes. "Lieutenant!" The brothers were surprised to see him.

The man grinned, but before he could say a word, "Hughes!" Talia beamed at the lieutenant's presence and practically pounced on the man, arms around his shoulders. Hughes quickly caught her, taken aback that an energetic woman has unexpectedly trapped him in friendly contact, and then looked at her face, recognition slowly surfaced.

"Talia? I didn't expect to see you here!" Hughes returned the gesture of the woman, and moved her back for a better view of her, "It's been a while! How have you been?"

"Great! How are Gracia and little Elicia? I haven't talked to them in so long!"

"They're doing great! Wow, it must have been a few years, huh? Last time we saw you, Elicia was still a baby. Hold on! Let me show you some pictures of her!" His hands searched all over his uniform until he found a photo and openly gushed, "My little angel is about to turn three! She's sweet and by far the most precious little girl! Elicia and Gracia have been my whole world!"

"That's wonderful! Awww~ Elicia is so adorable!" Talia matched his enthusiasm, "She'll grow up to be a beautiful heartbreaker one day."

"I hope so! Otherwise, if any boy tries to make a move on my baby girl, I'll introduced them to my gun collection..."

"You sound just like my dad, which means you're being a terrific parent!" Talia laughed, knowing perfectly that her old friend wasn't kidding at all.

Hughes laughed, "Well I try my hardest. Oh here! I got other pictures in my wallet I can show you!"

"Let me see them! Let me see them!"

All else stood idly by as the two happy adults gushes their shameless joy and obvious love of the two people in discussion as photo after photo are exchanged between them, both laughing and crying in an array of happiness.

"Uh...Lieutenant?" Edward called, bringing the adults out of their fuss of endearment of the several photos in their hands, "Do you guys know each other?"

"Sure! Maybe not as much as Gracia does though."

Talia explained, "Gracia and I were classmates since middle school! We kind of lost touch after our high school graduation and ran into each other now and then. What's Gracia been doing these days?"

"Being a loving wife and mother, I'll tell you that much!" Hughes answered proudly. "Everyday I wondered how a guy like me was lucky enough to be with a woman like her. You should come by to Elicia's birthday party! Gracia will be ecstatic to see you."

"Oh, I loved to. But my job as a teacher has been getting a nasty hold on me for a while now, maybe there's something I can do about that? Oh! Let me introduced to you to Sheska! Did Gracia ever mentioned her?"

"I don't believe so, but it's nice to meet you anyway young lady," Hughes shook hands with the brunette who mutely nodded.

"I've been looking after Sheska while her mother is recovering at the hospital," Talia explains. "You'll like her real quick, she's just as precious and wonderful as Gracia, I guarantee."

"A-ah...that's not true..." Sheska tries to hide her embarrassment behind her bangs.

"I see. Well, I wish the best for your mother. I hope Talia hasn't been too much trouble for you," Hughes smiled cheekily, "She can get a bit crazy sometimes."

The unamused Talia smacked him by the arm, "Oh shush! You're terrible as always! But enough about that, what brought you here?"

"I came to see the Elric brothers," remembering his reason for coming here, Hughes turned to the brothers, "I was surprised to hear that they were in the city. I told you guys to call me up when you got here."

"Sorry. Something came up and we got busy," Edward would rather not admit that he and Alphonse had five days of a waiting period, but no need for the _Family Man_ to know about that. "How's everything been with you?"

"To be honest, not so good." The man sighed, "It's been crazy lately, what with Scar, the Tucker Chimera case-"

He winced when he saw the visible pained look in Edward, "Sorry. That's still a fresh wound for you. It hasn't been easy for all of us, and now with the First Branch of the Central Library burned down, it's been hectic back at the station."

"That bad?"

Hughes nodded, "A lot of our case records was lost in that fire. Trying to work without them hasn't exactly been a walk in the park."

The brothers pondered over this apparent fact, and then looked towards Sheska. "...uh?" The brunette looked behind her until she was sure it was her who they were looking at and points to herself in question.

"Lieutenant Colonel," Edward said, "I think we have someone who may just be able to help you."

Talia followed their gaze with a blink, "Huh?"

"Is that so?" Hughes looked at the brunette.

"Well..." The ex-librarian began, "I did read all the military criminal records before the First Branch burned down, and I do remember all of them. If you need me to, I can write them down for you."

"Really now?" Impressed gleamed in Hughes eyes, "Now that's what I like to hear. Congratulations, you're hired. We can discuss the payment another time, but you'll be rewarded well."

The ex-librarian and the teacher were shocked, "R-really? Oh wow! Thank you!" Sheska said, overjoyed. Such an opportunity fitting for her talent, she could hardly believe it, and neither could Talia.

"Wait what?! Just like that? No interview or anything?!" Talia's experience in being hired had never gone this smoothly, and she barely made through the application!

Hughes dismissed the notion with a wave of his hand, "I'm kind of in a hurry so there isn't any time, but I'm sure we'll get to know each other later."

Sheska eagerly nodded, "I'll do my best, you won't regret this decision sir!"

"I'll bet, since I'll be taking Talia's good word of you for it," with a deviant grin, the lieutenant takes hold of the back of Sheska's collar, "Well it was great to see you guys again! See you around Talia!" He bolted out of the door with a happy and thankful Sheska in his grasp.

"Wait wait wait! You can't just take my Sheska away from me! Huuuughes!" Talia ran after the fleeting lieutenant, chasing him with a mind that begged to have a wooden sword in hand (even if she wouldn't get away with assaulting an officer).

"...I thought there couldn't be anymore weird people like that crazy man."

Alphonse had to agree with his brother, but still let out a little laugh. Their break now over, the brothers resumed their work to decrypt the notes, and all the while, the two officers were left utterly stunned at what happened.

The fact that Sheska's guardian knew Lieutenant Colonel Hughes is a surprise by itself, but to see how utterly familiar these brothers were to the high-ranking officer left the soldiers with a simple question: just who in the world are these boys?

* * *

Days go by. With each passing hour, a page is decoded, and with each passing day, a much more difficult encryption is discovered. The boys dealt with frustration at any findings of a nearly impossible code, and small bit of pride at their success to unravel it. Rarely do they leave for anything else except for food, the restroom, or when the library is closing.

By far, there have been no greater fight that took more time than the battle they are enmeshed with now. But they did not give up, not for a moment and not for a second. Relentlessly, they dug through the words of double meanings, their intellect challenged and pushed to their limit. Exhausting their minds but they proceed regardless. It was for each other, and most of all, it was for their young missing friend.

Ten days have passed. The library is about to close for the night, and to the officers guarding outside the study room, it would seem that another day was spent without progress.

A book was thrown against the wall, "Dammit!" A frustrated cry from the Fullmetal Alchemist, and the notes they had incessantly looked through were all over the floor. It seemed to be a sound of defeat, but it was nothing like it.

They had finally deciphered the notes. And it was _not_ what they wanted to find.

"What's wrong?" Maria asked. She and Denny stepped inside when they heard Edward's shout, and were shocked to see the room a complete mess.

"What did you guys do to this place?" Denny steps over a pile of papers, "Just because you can't solve these notes doesn't mean you can just throw things around."

"We did solve it," Alphonse revealed, but there was no joyful accomplishment in his voice. "We cracked the code, and decrypted the notes."

"Wha-? Well that's good, isn't it?"

Edward's metal fist slams against the wooden floor, "No! It's not! There's nothing good about this at all! It should've been left in the fire where no one else will see this..." He gripped his head, a nauseating feeling in the pit of his stomach, "Dr. Marcoh was right, this is the Devil's research."

"But...why?" Maria tentatively moves forward, "What's so bad about it?"

"...The secret to creating the Philosopher's Stone requires a crucial ingredient..." He uttered the secret ingredient, and the officers were in shock. The main ingredient to the creation of the Philosopher's Stone...

Is human life.

"What? Human life? Are you serious?" Maria didn't want to believe it, but she couldn't ignore the look of distraught on Edward's face. "Are you...sure?"

"We've looked at it again, and again. We didn't want to accept that this was all there is..." Alphonse's form shook, "But...this is it. The Philosopher's Stone is built from _human lives_."

"How...how could this be in the First Branch? Did the military really authorized this?" Denny's mind was spinning. He became a soldier just to protect and serve the people, it's what he thought the military was all about. If that was the case, what in the world was this research?

"How horrible..." Maria gagged, sharing a similar thought with Denny.

The horrifying truth remained in the air, then Edward pleaded, "Do us a favor. What you heard here, pretend it never happened."

Maria frowned, "What? But sir..."

"Please!" Edward spoke louder, more desperate. "Don't ever mention this to anyone. No one...no one should know what we found out. If this is what the military had been working on, we don't know who we should go to for this. Please...just forget what you know."

He needed to think, to comprehend all this. He needed to get out of this room, this room that was now buried with the truth of his only hope, the hope that was forged into an abomination.

Not another word was spoken, and they left it at that even as they distance themselves from the library, without ever looking back.

* * *

The notes were destroyed. It was too dangerous to let it exist any longer, but they could never erase the horrible truth. The secret of the Philosopher's Stone. It was not another false lead, and it was not a dead end, this is what they have been looking for, but the price was too much. In exchange for their body and limbs, if only one of them, they will have to forfeit someone's life. A human soul.

This was what awaited at the end of all their consistent efforts in their long journey. What a cruel turn of events.

"...You really should eat something, brother," Alphonse weakly insisted. They were in a hotel, with their bodyguards stationed outside the front door, not to be disturbed as they still reeled with the knowledge that may forever haunt them.

"No thanks. I don't have the appetite," said Edward as he lay on a couch. "All this time...whenever we tried to grasp the truth, it always manages to slip from our fingers. Now, we finally had it, only to discover that it was too dangerous to hold."

He smiles sadly, "God sure does have a way with tormenting those who committed the taboo." He scratched the back of his hand to soothe a faint prickle. "We did some good things, didn't we Al? Help a few people, save some lives, you'd think after doing some good to try and make up for what we've done, the big guy in the sky would give us a break."

 _"He will need to learn how to cope with his errors before seeking redemption,"_ He recalled a certain girl once said about a lunatic priest. _"This path is not denied for any of God's children."_

He snorted softly. So far, Edward honestly believes the this path has been restricted solely from him and his brother. He already knew the errors he's made, what more does he have to endure?

 _I'm sorry, Nina..._ Edward felt his heart tighten, _We really do want to save you...but this..._

What now? He wonders. Edward had placed all his bets on these notes, on the stone, only to find it an even worse taboo than the one he committed. Do they keep searching? But what else could they look for? And how could they simply move on knowing that the military was conducting experiments like this? If they do decide to keep looking, where do they go from here? The only other item he's heard that's similar in power as the Philosopher's Stone is this absurd Holy Grail that also requires sacrifices but from the "undead." As if that's any better or less insane.

No, there was nothing else he could think of. There was...nothing else. Try as he might a hundred times before, always persisting, always moving forward, right now, he never felt so lost.

 _"Don't give up. I'm sure there is a way for the both of you to find what you are looking for."_

It was her voice again, echoing in his mind. Somehow he was able to remember her words even after they last saw her about two week ago. He wondered how she's doing now...

He looked over to his brother, just as quiet as he was. How was his younger brother holding up? The same as Edward is feeling, much more?

"...Hey Al, there's something I've been meaning to ask you."

 _Do you hate me for thinking that this was our only chance? Do you blame me for everything I've put you through?_

Alphonse looks to him, "What is it?"

"It's something I've been thinking about for a while, but I was too afraid to say it..." He takes a deep breath, embracing for Alphonse's answer: of hatred, loathing, bitterness maybe?

Alphonse waited patiently, growing concern by the second the longer Edward hesitated. "Brother?"

Edward opens his mouth, "Do you-"

A loud noise of a large palm slamming against their door startled the brothers. "Elric brothers! Open up! This is the Major!" Alex Armstrong announced his presence, repeatedly banging on the door.

"Should we...?" Alphonse's body shift, contemplating to answer the door or not.

Edward shook his head, not quite in the mood for visitors. "Let's just ignore him."

The door busted open by a fist, the Elrics screamed at the forced intrusion of the large man, who welcomed himself in with waterfall tears rain down to his chin.

"Elric brothers! I know what was in those notes! How tragic! So utterly tragic! To think that the Philosopher's Stone is built upon a terrible secret!"

The two officers slowly enters the room. "Sorry, he got us to talk," Maria apologized. It was hard to keep quiet from a man like Alex, never mind him being their superior, he has a knack in being intimidating when he wishes to be. Neither she or Denny could keep it to themselves for long.

Calming down, Armstrong takes a seat in a chair, his disturbed feelings of this knowledge prominent in his expression, "To think, the military is responsible for this. The truth is often much more painful than anyone can ever imagine."

Indeed. The truth...

 _The truth..._

Edward frowns, "Al, do you remember what Dr. Marcoh told us?"

"Huh?"

The Fullmetal Alchemist adjust his position to sit, "Back at the station, he told us to find the truth, within the truth." His fingers intertwined and clutched into a firm grip, "Back then, I haven't got a clue what he meant, but it's just like those notes. There's something else we're not getting, hiding from us..."

A minute later, the map of Central settles upon the diner table, the soldiers and the brothers stood around it. With a red pen, Armstrong begun marking certain buildings on the map, "There are four active alchemy laboratories in Central that have a connection to the government. We can narrow it down to less. Marcoh had worked in the third lab, we can start investigating there."

"Al and I have been to every laboratories in the city," the Fullmetal Alchemist searched the map, "None of them were doing any remarkable research - Wait, what's that?"

He points to a building, marked in "X".

"That was supposed to be the fifth laboratory, but it's currently not in use," Maria informs. "The building isn't structured appropriately, so it's been classified as off-limits."

Golden eyes shimmered, "It's there. It has to be."

"How can you be so sure?" Denny questioned, leaning forth to see the X marked place.

"Because right next to it is a prison. You remember what the Philosopher Stone's key ingredient is?"

"You said it needed human lives..." It then clicked together for the sergeant, "No way...they're using inmates for this research?"

"There's plenty of condemned criminals," Edward said. "Officially, they would have been recorded as executed."

"When really, they're being used to create Philosopher's Stones..." Maria covers her mouth, absolutely horrified.

"Not just that prison either," Alphonse joins in, "Prisoners from other jurisdiction can also be used. I wonder if the government is involved..."

"This is starting to sound really bad," Denny expresses. "I know that goes without saying, but I'm getting the feeling that we're digging into something very dangerous here..."

"That's why we told you to forget what you heard!" If Alphonse could help it, he and his brother would prevent anyone from delving into perilous matter, especially a dark conspiracy as big as this.

Armstrong takes the map, rolling it as he thought of everything the brothers have speculated. No, not speculations, he knew in his heart that these brothers may be right. "If this gets out, it will be a political nightmare before long. I'll look into this, but in the meantime, speak no one about what we have just discussed tonight."

"Understood sir!" Maria and Denny saluted.

The Major firmly nodded, "Now...as for you boys..." He towers over the brothers, "You will sit put and behave yourselves!"

The Elrics jumped at his loud order.

"I know you two. You were thinking about sneaking into this building and have a look around, weren't you? Admit it!"

They denied fruitlessly, "We weren't! We weren't! We swear!"

And they kept their promise, until the major left them in his officers care, placing an order that the boys are to not leave this room, and the brothers snuck out through the window at the major's total departure. They ran together into the night, to discover what other secrets the military is hiding.

* * *

The crescent moon glowed beautifully in the dark sky, accompanied by hundreds of stars and partially cloudy. A calm evening greeting itself again during her travel.

The wooden carriage overcame a bump in the road, causing Jeanne to shortly leap from her seat. "You alright young miss?" The elderly man asked her over the sounds of hooves clapping against the dirt path in a gentle pace, his chestnut fur horse he held the reigns to.

Jeanne assured she was fine. "When will we reach the next town?"

"A couple miles more, we're already passing Central City."

He has been such a kind man. It was sunset when Jeanne had been walking by a grassy field and founded by the man riding his carriage that was pulled by his horse. He offered her a ride and Jeanne accepted it graciously, her travel by foot had been torture for a long while after she missed her train at the previous stop. She offered to pay the man for his help and he denied it.

"Some folks just got to help others" was his explanation. Truly, there are as many kind people as there are from her world, and that should not be a surprise. It's already understood that this world was no different from hers, that it had people with unique individual lives, some are kind and others are hardened, but there hasn't been an instant where she felt so unwelcome as a stranger separate from these people, and felt so alive. She has Rose to thank for that as well.

Yet although the moments of peace were nice, the war itself hasn't progressed by much. It's been a few weeks since she first came to this world as the Ruler Servant, every few days, she senses the death and defeat of a few Servants, and by the next morning, new pairs of Command Seals is added on her body, another arrival of new Servants which she has to approach and confirm the legitimacy of their Master's standpoint in the war, and then be on her way. She has seen Servants fight and die at the second week of her existence, but for the last two days, it's been quiet. Ominously so.

She hasn't found any Masters of the Red Faction, and for any Servant with or without their Master suspected to have dealings with this group, they claim to deny any relations to them, and not in a while had she been threatened with an attack. For two days, the war has been at a complete stalemate.

And that left her without a clue of what to do next. She should have patience, something ought to happen soon, but the wait has been gnawing, and she can't pinpoint why that is. It's like all around her, some form of foreboding is there, which explains why Jeanne felt that she was moving in circles. Being everywhere she is called to, but not where she is needed - the source of this war's anomaly.

 _Saber. Archer. Lancer. Rider. Caster. Berserker. And Assassin. The Holy Grail War is built upon these seven classes of seven Servants - Heroic Spirits. With myself the exception. But this war has expanded beyond the seven slots, and above the control of both the Holy Church and the Mage Association, so much so that the Amestrian military has been involved. Yet with all these Masters and Servants, there has been one group labeled and identified for their acts of merciless killings, and the other group that aims to stop them._

The Red Faction and the Blue Faction.

 _Then there's the missing vessel of the Holy Grail. With I unable to detect it's location because of my abnormal summoning, it's unknown where exactly the Holy Grail will reveal itself, and for it to accept more than seven Servants than what it was originally constructed to intake, this war may go on longer than all the previous wars until only a few Servants remains. It could take months..._

What could be causing all of this? The source of trepidation Jeanne has in her heart. And why can't she find it? Why does she feel so strange, so inexplicably drawn to all of her surroundings and people? At first, she believed it to be the Grail, to the war itself, and that something was very wrong with it, but recently, she's been having second thoughts.

Was it possible that there was something else other than the oddity that is the Grail war? Something that is of equal potential danger? A likely coming of a catastrophe that has yet to bloom?

Ever since she came to this world, she felt an air of warning. As if a great danger is hiding beneath the earth, waiting, and counting, before it was ready to emerge. Her focus was to the war, but she felt this sensation that's pulling her elsewhere, needing as much attention as her first priority. All of this started the moment she took control of Rose's body, and set foot onto this country.

Jeanne sighed, and looked over the wooden fence of the cart she's in. The city lights of Central brimming like the edge of a sunrise in the middle of the night.

"I wonder how those boys are doing?" She whispered to herself, and questioned if they have discovered the truth of the Philosopher's Stone? She hopes very much that whatever they found, they'll pull through. That they'll-

"...?!" Her senses were triggered and she straightens her back, "What?"

She remained attentive, and abruptly stood up.

"Stop the cart!"

The elderly man flinched, pulling the reigns and stopping his horse. Jeanne hopped down along with her luggage and met the elder's side just as he began to ask what was wrong.

"Take to the field," she pointed the way, opposite from the city. "Hurry and do not stop until you've reached your town. Please, do as I say."

The elder wanted to question, but affected by her words, he held back his tongue and whipped with his reigns, ushering the horse to gallop away.

Jeanne waited until the elder's carriage was far enough, and then moves to open her luggage. A bowl was taken out and set upon the ground. She unclipped the second bottle from her belt and uncapped it, pouring holy water into the bowl until it's filled.

Putting away the bottle, her hands then dove into the water, cupping it in her hand, and threw the liquid into the air in front of her. A blue glow from every drop of the holy water that sparkled like pearls formed into a fog-like circle. Landscapes were revealed, and the three-dimensional map of Amestris is shown. Red dots reign in some places, and herself taken accounted for on the scan as a yellow dot. One brief look across the map, and her triggered senses have been confirmed.

A gasp of disbelief left her, "Several Servants are approaching the city."

She counted them; eight Servants, and a closer inspection shows that they had some type of familiars around them - an army of them. So much, it was too much to be discreet, the civilians will see them easily. They were...these Servants are announcing themselves. Not bothering to hide. It was a declaration.

"No..." These Servants, surely they wouldn't...surely they don't plan to-!

Ruler kicked the bowl aside as she dashed for the city in a mad haste. Her flag and armor instantly summoned.

* * *

The people of Central City were enjoying their night in oblivious peace, with only certain individuals doing work that does not allow carefree comfort - such as the Elrics who are investigating the ploy in military jurisdiction. For others, they were spending quality time with their loved ones and friends, or is otherwise content with being by themselves. They were utterly and completely unaware of the force that was coming in great numbers. All except for those whose senses are much keener than any normal human being, and even more sensitive than even the artificially created beings.

"My...Doing paperwork is so painfully dull," Fuhrer King Bradley sets aside another document. He and his Servant Saber were in his office at Central Command, with him at his desk and Saber standing beside him, her arms behind her back and her form like a guarding statue. "It's times like these that I wish we can sneak out just to stretch my legs."

Saber said nothing in response, merely quietly listening to Bradley, a typical exchange between them. "I certainly look forward to coming home soon," said the Fuhrer. "I wonder what my dear wife is making for dinner? Hopefully meatloaf. She always makes the best of them, and I know how much you enjoy her cooking no matter how well you try to hide it-"

He paused when he saw his Servant stiffened. Her head turns to the window where she walks to it briskly.

"What is it, Saber?"

Pale yellow eyes stares out the window and into the distance, "...The time has come, Master." She faces the Fuhrer, "Servants. And they are making themselves known quite clearly."

* * *

The beautiful and peaceful night was disturbed by an animalistic sound, and a beast with wings pierces through the clouds. A creature made of feathers, with the head of an eagle and claws that could carve into steel as it's front limbs, but it's hind was of a horse's legs and tail - a Hippogriff. It flew across the sky, followed by an army of flying inhumane creature with sturdy kite-like wings and smooth, jagged rock bodies - golems, some carry six other passengers on their backs, and some passengers carry a weapon.

Riding upon the Hippogriff were two people, the rider and owner of the flying beast, a young male with lovely feminine features. His pink hair in a thick single braid, black clothing with white gloves and boots, an armor around the chest and his hips, a white cape over his shoulders, and a sheathed sword beside him.

"Hey hey! Watch where you're stepping on my Hippogriff!" The feminine boy told the other person behind him, "He's already in a sour mood, if you do anything to worsen it, I won't promise that I'll be able to stop him!"

"A penalty the both of you will have to bear," speaking in a rather upbeat yet cold tone, the second individual was a female with masculine features - or was she also a male with feminine appearance? It was as uneasy to determine as it is trying to assume the Hippogriff Rider's gender at first glance. With white hair and clean cut ends, he or she wore a white fancy outfit with black linings, a spell book in their hand, and a necklace with a small medallion dangling along the wind. "This is your chance to redeem yourself, Rider. We wouldn't want to make your Master angry again."

"Yeah yeah, I got it. Be the obedient Servant," although Rider couldn't care at all what his Master would think. "Master wouldn't want this to be ruined by _anyone_ , that's why we didn't bring the others along. They wouldn't like this one bit."

There were really only a few Rider was mentioning, not every one of them that stayed behind to guard their hideout was against this. There were just two Servants Rider was thinking about, and the Caster Servant with him knew who they were.

"It would have been nice to have two Sabers with us, if only we had a better hold of him. Ah well, I'm sure this'll turn out just fine," the Caster opens their spell book. "Now, let's prepare to say hello to our great and powerful Fuhrer. Archer!"

The Persian Hero Arash comes to Caster's side on the back of a flying golem. Wordlessly complying, prana swarms his palm and the arrow is formed. Further increasing the power for a more impactful attack, he pulls his arrow by the bow string, pulling and pulling it as prana rounded his form.

He locked eyes with his target, in the city miles ahead of him. With his sight on Central Command, he let his arrow soar.

The arrow went nearly instantaneously, over the fields and above the roofs of the city buildings within a second. Within range of the arrow's passing, the people were caught off guard when they heard it flew over their heads, a powerful gust in it's wake that shook their balance. The lights on the streets and other establishments flickered, the people indoors felt a rumble in their surroundings. The arrow grew closer, and closer to its intended target.

For the soldiers walking down the hallway of Central Command, those who decided to look out the window for the simple view was given the only chance to see the speeding light that came in almost a blink, and right when they feel the instinct to duck and cover, their whole world was impaired by a blast.

An explosion at the front of the station, all soldiers and workers yelled and screamed, some has fallen from the quake of the attack and braced themselves, even those that were not near the impact stumbled at the shake of their surroundings. It was an unprecedented assault, by a power they were not at all familiar with. Without a doubt, there would be casualties...

The smoke clears, and a mirror-like barrier shimmered throughout Central Command. Long beforehand, a certain Servant had already made the preparations of a possible attack, and when word was brought that enemy Servants are closing in on the city, he activated the defense protocol. His work shone in accomplishing its task, powered by plates of circular mechanics that had appeared in time, floating in the air.

Nothing was damaged, and no soldier was killed. Every member within and around the building steadily stood up, watching in awe at the shield that protected them, and several more blasts ignited upon the barrier. All ducked at once as countless arrows hails over their base. The barrier remained intact, the little machines spun to consistently empower their defense. It was a lightshow of relentless fireworks.

The alarm within the station sets off, the intercoms announced that their station is under attack. Orders were barked by superiors, and every soldier hurries to their guns. Baffled as they were, they more or less straightened themselves out, ready to defend the place.

Still a distance away from the outskirts of Central City, the arrows they fired were never-ending. Constantly able to bring out new ones into existence, Arash takes yet another round of his firepower, lining all of them by the string of his bow, and releases them alongside the other Servant who also wielded a bow, but is not of an Archer class. A second Rider Servant. Peering her in the corner of his eye, Arash sees the creased brows upon the youthful-looking Servant of dark hair in a braided bun, sharing similar thoughts as he and perhaps the other Servants with them - excluding the smiling Caster.

When Arash came to this world to fight in the Holy Grail War, he set his boundaries to never involve innocent lives, yet what's happening right now is an attack on a city his Master assures to be housing Servants, and no better way to get them out than by making a ruckus such as this - it was the loudest option, most definitely.

The two Riders on his side did not at all agree with this approach, even if the station at the center of this city does hide a Master, it's promised that they'll be endangering other lives that were most certainly not one. To his quiet gratitude, the station had some kind of barrier around it, either the creation of a remarkable Alchemist, or a Servant. This at least confirms that the military has a powerful defense, not easy to break through even with his and the second Rider's arrows, they'll have to force their enemies to come out, or gather an even greater power to break through.

Arash is sure that the Lancer with the two spears must also disapproved this course of action, but out of submissive loyalty, he was not among those who openly questioned this order. As for the other Lancer with angry red hair, it's not certain what that man's thoughts are to this, only just recently summoned and Arash hasn't had the pleasure to converse with him, but there was this air about him that spoke a warrior who enjoys a good fight, so perhaps as long as there will eventually be one, he'll comply quietly. Their white hair petite Berserker was indifferent - riding on her flying golem close to the dark hair Rider Servant, and their Saber expressed nothing, as if this was a daily routine she was used to.

Even for those who does not like this, what are they to do? If they decide to act against orders, they'll be _commanded_ to do it anyway with a use of a Seal. His Master certainly isn't the kindest of people. He'll just have to make due, so long as he can ensure that no civilian life is involved, he'll work to his best ability. He held this thought close to him as he summons another arrow, aimed at the sky, and fires. This time, the station was not his target. As the arrow slowly descends to the city, he shot another arrow, hitting the first one before it could crash into an apartment complex. An explosion of light and smoke, the people that were close enough to see it ran from the obvious sign of a disaster coming. Scared as they were, none of them were hurt by his arrows.

"Oh? Now I was sure your orders were specified," Caster teases. The order was to cause a commotion to make the people flee, so that there would be streets they can use for themselves and to fight among. Arash's Master wanted him to destroy the roofs of some buildings so to terrify the locals into fleeing the area, this would have harmed those who were unfortunate enough to be in the way of the broken remains falling on their heads, but it would also usher the people inside the buildings to get out and leave the area.

Arash responds, "I didn't think it mattered, so long as the people won't be in the way," and if his Master says otherwise, then let it come whatever she may throw at him.

* * *

There was haste and panic at a section of the city and Central Command. Footsteps that hurries to respond the crisis while guiding the frightened people caught in the middle of it. Soldiers were sent to the streets, where what happened at the station is also happening elsewhere, and must evacuate the civilians to the nearest shelter.

The intruding Servants were closing in, they will enter the city district soon. But in contrast to the urgency of over hundreds of men and women in uniform, secluded from the knowledge of many others, hidden beneath the station, a man calmly sat in his throne in an underground dome made of metal and pipelines, a man that was not human.

He looked to be in his late middle-age, his body, hair and beard, his robe and even sandals were completely white. The only color there was on him was the boldly red tattoo of three symbols upon the back of his pale hand. The area around him trembled, but he was unmoved. Merely resting his eyes with his knuckles against his chin.

 _"Master..."_ A voice resonates within his skull, _"Servants are approaching the city airborne. Eight of them, and an army of golems carries them. The mechanism I've built managed to prevent serious destruction to the station above you."_

"You've proven your work is indeed durable then," the man in white said, sounding pleased. "I've already send word to the others. If there are eight of them, then we shall send eight in return, the rest will remain where they are, only to move in when necessary."

The doors to his chamber opens, a figure walks in.

 _"They're also igniting chaos at the edge of the city, though not_ _directly_ , _"_ the man's Servant informed. " _Their Archer shoots his own arrows, causing explosions overhead the buildings, and driving the people out of the neighborhood. It seems they intend to clear the area for battle. I've already send the counter-measures, but should they bypass them, Medea has her skeleton warriors at the ready to deal with the golems and support the Servants on our side, once the Red Faction reaches within city boundaries."_

"Very well. Keep to your station, you may use your tools to offer assistance or however you like. Report to me of any updates."

 _"Understood, Master."_

The person who entered walks to side of the man in white. "Your Caster has told you then?"

The man in white nodded, "The Red Faction has come. Unruly intruders daring to invade. They shall have to be dealt with at once."

"I've brought you a gift. Medea had provided me this on my way here," he lifts the smooth, glass ball in his adolescent hands. "It should allow us a clear view of the battle that will soon commence."

"Ah, very good." The man accepted the ball. A second later, a picture shows, and it evolved into a live-feed video of Central. "Do you sense anymore Servants other than these eight?"

"No, but there may be an Assassin I have yet to detect. However..."

The boy leaned forward to see the ball closely, his golden cross necklace dangled, "Ruler is nearby, and heading for Central right now. She must have already sensed the Red Faction moving in." No better timing he supposes.

"Is it safe for you to stay here?"

The youth smiles without worry, "It's nothing too troubling. She will be immensely busy. What's happening now, she cannot afford to ignore it." Even if she were to sense the unusual existence that is himself.

The man in white smiles, "What we have been waiting for, it's finally about to happen..."

All previous battles that had been occurring all across the country, they were mere skirmishes compare to what will happen tonight. The epitome of what makes multiple Servants in one war truly appalling.

The boy straightened his back, his equally white hair faintly illuminates in the ceiling light as he pressed his golden cross against his black priest clothing, "Yes. Tonight, the Grand Holy Grail War has officially begun."

* * *

 **This is where everything starts...**

 **A/N: Hello everyone! Sorry for the wait, I've been thinking over and over on how this chapter will proceed until finally, this was the result. I'm so excited to hear all of your feedbacks!**

 **I gave Sheska's mom a name just for reference, but I wasn't sure what last name to give them, I was thinking of giving her the English Dub Voice Actor's surname, but by the time I finished writing this I've already become fond of the nickname "Ms. Sharon" that Talia and Gracia refers to Sheska's mother as. It really shows the kind of bond they had with their old teacher.**

 **Anyway, Central City is under attack! Look forward to finding out what Servant will participate in this first official battle between multiple Servants fighting at once! I can't wait to write the next chapter!**

 **Please let me know what you like about this chapter, and to leave behind a kind and honest review! Have a nice day!**


	9. Frontal Assault

**Before we go into this chapter, I'd like to get into answering questions that I keep forgetting to respond.**

 ** _To Ctl0ver777: _I'm not sure if Jeanne will have a chance to speak with Truth, but I don't think she would believe his usual answer of who he is, since she would catch that it was other people who calls him the following: God. Truth. The World. Or you, and that not any of these are necessarily true(At least that's how I perceived it). She can also definitely tell that there is a difference between the God she heard in her life who was crying, and Truth who spoke indifference to humanity. Anyway, I'm not quite sure how their meeting will go, perhaps Truth _is_ God in FMA, or perhaps he is something else entirely.**

 ** _To Yolea Irk's: _This story is sort of like the Grand Order expansion, but it WON'T involve anything like time travelling or multiple Grails, there is only one Grail(how it could even generate this many Servants will be explained much, much later), and Solomon won't be involved in this war. Basically, this is the Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood storyline intertwined with some of the Fate Series plots such as Apocrypha and Stay Night. Anything else I won't give away but you'll find out soon.**

 **The reason why here it's called the Grand Holy Grail War because this is bigger than the Great Holy Grail War of Fate/Apocrypha where it involved 14 Servants. As we have read so far, obviously there will be more than just 14.**

 ** _To yasulong:_ The proxy characters of Fate presented WILL be important later on, the information I've written in chapter 8 are my take in putting in lore for this story and for readers to know more about the characters, and to explain how Sheska knew Talia and Isaiah, but I can see why this all seems unnecessary. I will admit the quality of the writing has dropped, and I wasn't quite satisfied with chapter 8. I'm thinking of going back and editing it further but until I figure out how, I'll just have to try better in my next chapter.(Update: I've already edited the chapter so I'm hoping it's a better read this time around, but helpful advise is appreciated for any future chapters I'll be doing.)**

 **For the Rioden Temple(Ryuudou Temple) the Homunculi doesn't want to make too much of a commotion. They are DEFINITELY aware of the kind of temple it is, having only just recently discovered it's potential purpose a year or so prior, and so they want it. But while they got away with the Ishvalan war, and they could do it again if only with immense discretion, now is not the appropriate time. They don't want to jump the wagon. However, the moment they take notice that the Greater Grail is about to form, they WILL at once proceed to take the temple by force or any means at their disposal.**

 **The magical energy that surrounds the temple intrigues Father, but for now he's putting his attention in ensuring that everything else - including the war - is going as plan. He has a few ideas on what he can do with the Temple, but these are only ideas that doesn't necessarily rely on his plan to godhood, just as a side-project is how he would treat it. It won't get in the way of his Transmutation Circle, so while it is interesting, it's not a major concern of his as of now, other than it's existence is a likely area for where the Holy Grail may appear.**

 ** _To Carre:_ I have not seen that movie. But after your comment I looked it up online and read a bio about Julia, I'm not quite sure if I should involve her. Maybe when I get around watching the movie, I might consider it.**

 **xThomas2 : You are definetly right, while there are people who believed the Truth and the Root are the same, they're really different places from separate dimensions, and yet they seem to have much in common for being the source of _everything_.**

 **Leave a review or PM me if you have any other questions!**

 **On a side note, I actually had so much planned for the last chapter but I decided to cut it down. The things that I originally planned to put in will be presented in the chapter you're about to read. I also did some editing in the last chapter, nothing too big, just a few adjustment and one additional dialogue at the end of Ch. 8, I always felt that there could have been more. Here's hoping to fill in the gap.**

 **Thank you all for your support and reaching over 100 reviews! Please leave me more of your thoughts and reviews!**

* * *

Chapter 9: Frontal Assault

"Daddy! Daddy! Look what I drew!" A little girl with dim blonde hair in pigtails ran to her father inside the dining room, a paper clutched in her little hands. Maes Hughes knelt down to take a look at the drawing sketched by his daughter.

"That's you! And me! And mommy too!" Elicia beamed with pride over the fine, colorful work she had perfected with every ounce of love she could pour.

Hughes smiled, adoring the childish art made by his little girl, and quickly wraps Elicia in his everyday fatherly hug and affection. "It's beautiful! We should hang it up on the refrigerator!"

"There isn't enough room there," entering with plates and utensils in her hands, Gracia informs this to both her husband and child. "There's already so many of your other wonderful drawings."

"We can pin them outside our door!" Hughes suggested. "Then everybody will see that my little Elicia is an artist!"

Gracia lovingly laughed at her husband's suggestion, "Or maybe we can put it up in our hallway instead. Elicia, go ahead and leave that drawing in your room and go wash your hands. Dinner is about to be ready."

"Okay mommy!" Released from her father's hug, the little bundle of joy hurries to her room.

"So you've met Talia today?" Gracia asked her husband. "Goodness, it's been so long."

How long has it been exactly, since she last saw her best friend? A year maybe? The two of them have certainly been busy, what with Gracia so focused in her duties as a housewife and mother for Elicia, she wonders how her old classmate has been all this time.

"She's been looking after this girl I recently hired as my new assistant name Sheska," Hughes said. "Do you know her?"

It was a name she haven't thought up or heard in quite a while, "Of course! I took her mother's classes with Talia back in high school. She must be all grown up now." The housewife sets down a plate in front of her husband's chair. "And you hired her as your assistant? That's good to hear."

"As good as it is for all the help she's done for us," Hughes steps in to help his wife. "We've managed to get back a few records that was lost in the fire. I'm thinking about giving her a raise. She's got a little issue in having butter-fingers, but she works hard, and so long as she stays in her chair not a lot of accidents happens."

His beloved wife chuckled. "What about Sharon? Sheska's mother I mean. How is she doing?"

"You don't know? Talia told me she's at the hospital."

The last plate slipped from Gracia's fingers. Ever so the reliable husband, Hughes reacted instantly and caught the plate before it touched the ground. "What?!" Gracia was shocked. "I had no idea! Is she alright?"

"She's doing better," Hughes sets the plate on the table. "Right when Talia caught up with me after I kidnapped Sheska from her-"

Gracia knew Hughes long enough to not at all be surprised that her husband did such a thing.

"-she told me that her grandfather is helping with the medical bills and that your old teacher is recovering nicely. She also gave me Sheska's house number in case we ever want to reach out to her, since she's basically living there now." He handed over Gracia the paper strip with the phone number written on it. "Then she pretty much berated me, telling me to take great care of Sheska or else I'll expect a wooden sword the next time she comes after me." He laughed. "It's nice to see how much she hasn't changed these last three years."

The actual time it had been since she's talked with her old classmate amazed Gracia. How time flew by...

"That's a relief to hear," said Gracia. "Maybe I should go visit her. Ms. Sharon has helped me and Talia through a lot, the most kindest person we've ever met." Another idea came to the woman, "I should also look up Talia sometime soon. It would be great to catch up with her."

"I invited her to Elicia's party," Hughes puts down the plate in front of Elicia's chair. "If you want, we could try calling her after dinner-"

The lights in the dining room flickered. It was not the only room to have evidence of tampered electricity, but the entire apartment.

"There it goes again. I wonder if we're going to have a black-out?" Gracia thought out loud. She should get the flashlights and candles ready, just to be safe.

The house-phone rang. Being closest to it, Hughes went and picked up the receiver, "Hello?"

Gracia sets down the utensils beside each plate, watching her husband silently.

"...Understood. I'll be right there."

A grim expression on Hughes, he ended the call with a click of the receiver. "Something happened at Central Command, an explosion was set off by some kind of missile."

 _Missiles_ to be exact, as he heard well from the other line.

He goes for his military coat hanging on a rack, "Sorry honey, looks like I won't be staying for dinner again. Could you do me a favor and kiss Elicia goodnight for me? Oh and read her the story of the three little pigs, I told her that I would do it. Ah...she's going to be mad at me for breaking my promise-"

Gracia steps forth to help Hughes button up his uniform, "It's all right. I'll take care of everything." She planted a small kiss of good luck on his lips, "Just be careful out there, and come back safe."

With a loving smile, and the internal, eternal question of how he has captured such a wonderful woman, Hughes embraced his wife, "I will."

* * *

Word has traveled everywhere that Central Command is under attack, and that the same was happening somewhere at the edge of the city. Out on the streets, those who were nearby and saw the hail of _missiles_ unleashed by the unseen antagonists fled the area immediately, seeking for a safe haven.

"What in the-?!" Armstrong steered his car to the sidewalk, just avoiding a hit from the rear end of another vehicle. Stepping out, his height allowed him a view of the entire block and the hectic state it was in. Traffic cluttered the road, and there were frightened civilians scrambling for somewhere. Soldiers were present, trying to guide the citizens to a place that was without danger. His attention then takes to the dark sky, smoke rising from the direction of Central Command.

"Major Armstrong!"

Fellow men-in-uniforms approached him through the crowd. "What is going on?" The major questioned.

"We're to escort the civilians into the nearest shelters and clear the streets, sir!" Said the officer on the right.

"But why? What is happening?"

"I'm sorry sir, that's all they've told us!"

Armstrong frowned, "...Alright, just tell me where I'm needed." Even for what little he knows, he understood that something dire was happening, and the city is in a panic. He wishes he could make a phone call to his officers and the Elric brothers at the hotel, but with the situation around him so spastic, he might not get the chance even for a minute. He will just have to hope for their safety, for them to stay put unless they found it necessary to do otherwise.

He trusts the sergeant and lieutenant completely, just as so with the Elric brothers who knew well enough how to handle themselves - though he isn't confident that they wouldn't do anything reckless. In fact, he would suspect that if those boys ever get wind of trouble in the city, they are sure to investigate it. Far too curious for their own good.

A whirring noise zipped over his head. The Strong-Arm Alchemist glanced up for the sound, but there was nothing except the black sky. _Strange, I could have sworn I heard..._

He shakes his head. Never mind what he had or had not heard, he has to take priority in the people's safety, and somehow find out whatever is going on.

Had he looked up a second time however, he would have caught a glimpse of the source of the sound to be an object shooting by, and more of it's kind following by over a dozen in great speed as they target the antagonists coming increasingly close to the city's outskirts.

* * *

The Rider on his Hippogriff sighed. The course of action his Master is forcing him to follow impeding any ounce of enthusiasm the paladin always carries about him. Hard to have anything of the sort after the commotion Archer and the other Rider with her bow have brought to the city without warning, intruding and scaring the residents. Attacking in public like this was a definite violation of the Holy Grail War, of that he was sure. Cold and calculative Masters may use dirty means to gain the upper hand, but this was outright terrorizing and act of destruction. Not at all what a Servant like Rider himself had planned to do when he came to this world for the war.

He was already in a tight leash after a recent trouble he committed, and was only here because his fast flying friend was needed. After enduring a Command Seal that locked his absolute _compliance_ , Rider can only hope for the barest hint of rebellion if only to spite the one who gave this order to attack Central City. Which then he'll be punished again, but oh well. He had no regrets for his previous offense, and he'll do it again simply because he wanted to, no matter the pointlessness of it now, with the forceful drive to pursue this mission carved inside his movements from the **command** uttered by his Master.

But even with these heavy burdens, the Hippogriff Rider will not falter, for in his life that he endured many mistakes and misfortunes, this proud member of the Twelve Paladins of Charlemagne; Astolfo, will resume with immense effort, and at the very least, do what he could to not let innocent lives be caught in the crossfire.

"...Projectiles incoming," the Archer Arash tells the other Servants. The eight Servants looked ahead and spotted the contraptions Archer has warned. They were some kind of disks with red, rectangular jagged edge along the rims like the shape of a gear, and black at the center that also resembles a gear. They spun consistently, drawing closer to the Servants of Red.

"Ah, a welcoming party," the Caster of Red said, flipping a page in their spellbook. "Take care of them."

Arash and the second Rider acted. Several arrows were fired at the incoming projectiles, but they were all cut through by the edge of the circular mechanical objects. The constructions of these projectiles were so strong and refined to easily slice through their prana-based attacks, it couldn't have been constructed by mere man or Alchemist, most likely these are the creations of a Servant, and if so, these were the designs of someone truly brilliant.

Astolfo ushered his mythical animal to fly to the side, his white and gold lance materialized as with it he knocked aside an incoming gear, two of their Lancers with their spears deflected the projectiles like striking blades. The flying golems moved to avoid the contraptions, but a few has taken a direct hit, the gears jamming themselves into their rocky chests.

Destroying these machines is no simple matter, built as incredibly durable as the Red Servant's own weapons almost, and plenty to call it a problem. Some of the golems were spared to deal with these gears, and left behind just so these contraptions will not intervene the Red Faction, and the Servants proceeded into the city overhead.

A few gears broke away from the golems and flew to stop the Servants, but it was too late. The Red Faction has arrived, flying over roofs and establishments until reaching a specific section of the city. Archer's previous attempt to cause the civilians to flee from here have worked, and while Caster can imagine that perhaps some residents remained within these buildings, they cannot let themselves be stalled any longer. These citizens will just have to be comfortable where they are for a while.

"Lancers. Saber. Berserker. Drop down."

At Caster's order, four Servants hopped off their flying golems. The Lancer of two spears - Diarmuid Ua Duibhne landed right on top of an apartment. The second Lancer descended onto another roof across Diarmuid. Berserker had dropped into an alleyway, her weapon in chains summoned at once. Lastly, their Saber landed onto the street, the concrete cracked beneath her feet as her long veil fell over her back.

The gears that persisted behind were immediately intersected by their golems, this was the only chance Caster will have to rip away for claim, a no better time to set the stage. They raised their open book, the tome swarmed with magical energy.

 **"I make an offering to this broken world,"** they began, **"I offer blessings and thanks and sacrifices! I offer thanks to mother Atë, born the embodiment of madness!**

 **I offer blessings to the holy spirits of the world, who taught me magecraft, the madness of men! O' saint and knight who showed me a different madness, neither of you were mistaken!**

 **I make an offering! To all humanity, permitted by this broken world, I offer the sacrifice that is me!"**

Their voice rattled the air itself, their aria tapping into reality like stroking water, and with a heave of their breath, a shout of igniting their Noble Phantasm: **"Grand Illusion!"**

Ash gray fog bursts and fell from the spell book, swallowing his form and Astolfo, then expanding towards the golems tackling the gear projectiles. It spreads beyond them, to air and further up, to the buildings and streets below. Rumbling with prana spewing electrically, the fog became like that of a storm, and its size grew throughout the area.

* * *

He watches several kilometers away, standing upon the tip of a pole on top of a tower. A man of pale skin and white hair, a cape like a red wildflower on his back, golden armor around his shoulders, arms, and legs. Black clothing with his chest bare, where a sole red gem is seen at the center, and little glints of what must be armor merged into his skin. His appearance is unlike that of a human, reasonably so due to his heritage.

With a cool gaze, he observes the thick fog conquer the neighborhood, a fog that was manifested by one of the enemy Servants, its reach steadily increasing. "I see... Creating a dome to fight freely in, without being seen by others. Or perhaps that storm offers some kind of advantage? And if we do not respond, you will continue to expand throughout the entire city." Certainly, a most forthright assault, no matter who may be in the line of fire.

 _"Go to it, Lancer."_

He hears the order from his Master, and nodded in acceptance. "Very well," he summons his iron spear, beautifully crafted like it was carved from glass, its long blade black, with an emblem of the sun above the handle. "I will answer this challenge."

He leapt from the tower and dashed towards the storm. Though he had his view, he was not the only Servant to see what has bloomed within the city, nor was he the only one to go to it.

From the other side of Central, two more Servants flew across the sky, riding on their soaring transportation. A woman of long pink hair and a purple mask over her eyes, mounted on a white horse with feathered wings - her Pegasus, it's large body tasting the rough breeze. Beside the woman was another Rider Servant, his green hair wild in the rushing wind as his three horses he has by the reigns pulled his chariot.

"It's about time! I've been waiting for some action!" So happily yelled the green haired Rider of the Blue Faction. His last, somewhat legitimate fight against a Servant had been around two weeks ago, and it had ended abruptly without a winner. Even then, his Lancer opponent hadn't been fighting seriously as either of them would have liked. Now, he was charging into a _real_ battle, set against multiple enemy Servants that will truly be a spectacle for the Gods to applaud. "Let's go get them, sister!"

"I told you to stop calling me that," the Rider on her Pegasus coolly reprimands. No matter that this man and her are from the same land, she only had two siblings in her life she held close to her heart, and she wouldn't let herself be actual friends to someone who sought only for glory; the kind of hero that would hunt for her head as a prize for slaying someone like her.

Her dismissal did not at all dampen the thrilled mood of the green haired Rider, and he simply bid her a race once his three horses picked up speed. The Pegasus Rider ushered her animal to follow along, not an answer to the other Rider's challenge, but to respond where she is ordered to be as quickly as possible. The winged creature chased after the three-horses chariot, together piercing through the sky like torpedoes.

The selected Servants of the Blue Faction were responding accordingly, while only two went by air, others leapt across buildings. As the Lancer of Blue takes the lead, a couple of blocks away from his position, jumping from one roof to the next, a Saber in her full steel armor of red markings rushes for the storm. Catching up beside her was a large black horse, ridden by a boy with bright red unkempt hair in a braided tail, wearing his brown and gold leather with red belts over his torso.

"Look at you go!" The boy said to the Saber, "Someone's eager to get there before-"

"Shut up, Rider," Mordred silenced the boy. "Do not mention _that person_ around me, or I will skewer you."

Reminded of the other Saber, that so-called alternate version of her damnable perfect _father_ , she hastened herself. Countless times, Mordred had wished to fight that particular Servant, countless times, she is restrained and denied this chance. Her molten rage and infuriation boiling inside at the idea that this person exists within her range, and she is forced to cooperate with that Saber. _Damn Envy and his command..._

Never mind that the Saber in black was an illusion of the father she knew in life, that this dark knight is supposedly the same one who once shone in her armor in the sun while her people cheered for her like they would to a divine being - _and she really was that great._ This Servant who looked like her father, most certainly is her father, and worse yet...

She never so much as spoken a word to Mordred, not even a surprised gasp. Her _supposed_ father had recognized the knight who killed her, but there was no anger, no acknowledgement, just cold, distant and indifference, just as it was in life.

Her foot stomped through the ledge as she hopped quite a distance, and reached quite a distant to the next building. To hell with Envy, forbidding her right to challenge her father, but Mordred will not give up. She will defeat her father one way or the other, to outshine the perfect King and prove herself to be truly worthy enough for the crown. Not simply out of duty or birthright, but to show that Mordred is every way better than her father, and not some dirty child who has naught what it takes to be king. Then she will have what she so rightfully deserve, and her father will not have the luxury to deny Mordred any longer.

 _Such a brazen girl..._ The young red haired Rider thinks to himself. _I doubt letting your anger be obvious will have that dark Saber turn her head. This may be the night where either of us will see your capability, not just as a Servant._

And frankly, the boy cannot wait to see what will unfold.

* * *

"Not much for subtlety, are they?" This was said on the roof of Central Command. Despite his soldiers ushering that he move to a room where his safety is guarantee, King Bradley insisted he should go see the commotion happening to his city, and so there he stood on top of his base with his personal bodyguard beside him, together they assess the growing thick fog.

His rhetorical question was left unanswered, it was obvious enough with what he's seeing, but even for the enemy's overly ambitious move, this was actually fine with him. Bradley personally isn't one who likes using the backdoor when he goes for an attack, but he was not naïve. For the Red Faction's bold taunt, clearly a trap awaits his group, yet if the Blue Faction does not make a move, by the looks of this storm, it will overtake Central City.

His uncovered eye looks to the girl by his side. His Servant is already in her black armor and dress, her attention pierces through her defining mask, the black tainted sword in her clutch. A voice suddenly calls through the radio he had in hand and the Fuhrer answers it.

 _"The street from Central Command to the storm has been cleared of all pedestrians, sir,"_ the soldier relayed.

 _Good_. Bradley then ordered the man and the other soldiers to ensure that no one steps onto the street, and that they themselves should keep off it as well. Switching off the radio, he regarded his Servant who awaited for him silently.

"...Go, Saber. Show them your power. Should you even feel it appropriate to unleash your Noble Phantasm, I will trust your judgment."

His sound permission for her to answer this threat with all her strength, Saber hops over the railing. With the streets now clear in due efforts of the soldiers, his Saber will have nothing to hinder her travel there by foot, as she cannot transport spiritually as any Servant could. It was a special circumstance that matches what he's heard the Ruler Servant is suffering similarly, with only their conditions a great difference.

"Assassin."

In a shroud of black mist, the Servant in shrouded clothing and white skull mask appears beside Bradley.

"You are to follow Saber into that storm, hide yourself and evaluate the enemy Servants. Provide support when necessary."

"As you command," the Assassin Servant then quickly went after Saber, his presence cloaked at once. The Fuhrer felt the rush of the wind, the results of the wingspan and flight of two Servants overhead, but he hadn't looked, his sole attention was on the storm.

Eight of the Blue Faction Servants are heading for that storm, while the rest were to remain and guard. Any Master would leave it up to their Servants to deal with the enemies, and either sit back and watch or be prepared to fight against another Master, but Bradley will not waste such time, he has his role to fulfill, and it doesn't involve idly waiting by. He turns to the door and re-enters the base, seeing to it that every measures and procedures in Central Command are met to his expectations.

* * *

From the growing storm casted by the Caster of Red, two of the Red Faction Servants flew out from the fog, the Rider on his Hippogriff without the Caster accompanying him, and the girl with her bow still on the flying golem. They rounded the storm, quick as they were that by the time any of the residents would look up, they would have been missed, but then these residents are too focused on running away from the chaos that's slowly consuming their surroundings.

"...hm?" Astolfo suddenly had his Hippogriff fly to the left, his winged companion's right wing narrowly missing an arrow shot from below. The Rider helped guide his flying friend through the air to dodge the arrows, and the few arrows that they could not avoid were deflected by his lance. "Ah! That really surprised me! Where-?"

Oh, there he is. Three blocks away from the storm, a man is stationed on top of a water tower, his long green hair in a high ponytail, wearing mainly silk and little armor, red garment with a purple fabric belt around his waist, and an abnormally long bow that looked as if it would take a few men to pull it's string. But the most notable thing on the Servant was the basket on his back, a type of bag designed to carry food inside.

Another round of multiple projectiles were fired from the enemy Servant. Five arrows came for Astolfo, but as they got closer, five other arrows struck and destroyed them in an explosion of light and smoke.

"Thanks fellow Rider!" Astolfo waved at the girl on the flying golem, her ammunition held by her bowstring.

"See what Servants are coming!" Shouted the dark haired Rider. Astolfo playfully saluted and takes to the air, any arrows that chases after him were intersected by the arrows of the Second Rider of Red. It was an endless exchange, Archer of Blue moves from the water tower to avoid Rider of Red's attack, and the golem the Rider rode upon continuously flew around, maneuvered with elegant skills fitting of her class.

At last, Archer of Blue's attack inflicted with a shot of his two arrows, the first arrow reached the golem, destroying the center piece that made the golem functional, the other arrow ripped through one of its wing and the creature begun spiraling down. The dark haired Rider was unfazed, and merely jumped off the falling golem, herself then fell into the fog, gone from sight.

Archer of Blue then searches for the Hippogriff Rider, and spotted him(or maybe it was a her?) entering the fog quick, possibly have already counted the Servants of his group approaching, including himself.

"Hm...A Rider and an Archer perhaps, but with how well she's ridden that flying golem, might actually be a Rider also," Archer of Blue evaluated as he looked at the thick huge cloud of gray and prana. "Well, I guess there's nothing else to do except for me to go in."

 _"Archer! Archer! Are you there yet?"_ A voice spoke in his head, communicated by his Master.

"Yeah. It's a big fog alright. Once our friends catches up, I'll be heading in there," the Archer in silk looked for the Blue Faction Servants, it won't be long now.

 _"Be careful then. Good luck...and Archer?"_

"Yes?"

 _"Can I eat more of that rice from your basket when you get back?"_

Archer lets out a little laugh, "Sure thing. We can have a bowl for each of us, and like always, you can take as many servings as you like."

But he knew very well that no matter how much Archer shares, it will never satisfy his Master's hunger, for that creature's stomach is bottomless, but then, so was Archer's rice bag, so they evened each other out rather well, and both end up being limitlessly happy. This rice bag was Archer's reward in life, rather than obtain a legendary sword of great power or a spear that would kill a hundred man in one thrust, for his efforts in slaying the giant centipede, the reward he personally chose was this bag of endless rice.

It would seem useless, but he would disagree. The very use this rice bag offers is bringing joy to those who consumes it. Spreading happiness to everyone around him was all Tawara Touda strived for.

He felt no wrong getting along with the constantly hungry homunculus whom he always enjoyed sharing his rice bag with - occasionally his rice bag is never given back for hours much to Tawara's complaint, but the Archer cannot ignore the evil nature that is his Master and his Master's siblings, and the homunculi's "creator" is not a man the Archer particularly likes. It was his life to slay monsters, yet it was rather hard to be at opposition with a guy like his Master. Simply to enjoy food, he finds the sin "Gluttony" a compliment, and for the literal embodiment of the sin; a decent companion.

But Tawara draws the line between himself and his Master once the topic of "eating people" comes up, that is the only moment when the Archer would have to consider slaying his Master right then and there, which would take more than a hundred tries if only to exhaust that regenerative ability, as far as he understood. And this would only leave him in defeat should the other siblings and their Father send their Servants to stop him.

Honestly a shame, he rather liked Gluttony, never minding his slow-wittedness or constant draining of his rice bag that never runs out, and is by far friendlier than the other homunculi, so long as Tawara does not become the target of Gluttony's next meal.

His ally Servants were close now, he watched the Lancer of Red first enter the fog with no hesitation. Already craving to finish this fight early and enjoy a good meal later, Tawara ran forth and jumped in as well, his form disappearing into the mist.

The remaining four Servants of the Blue Faction, by air and by roof, charges into the fog with their weapons at the ready. Two other Servants still pursues for the storm, but they cannot be waited for. Time is not in the Blue Faction's favor, their fight is to begin and conclude at once. To put to an end to this storm, or else all of Central City will be devoured by it whole.

* * *

The golems flew far over her head as the creatures went into the storm as the gear projectiles chased after. Once Jeanne finally reached pass the city district, a stream of people ran by her, the source of their fright distinct just a mile ahead of her, rumbling constantly with prana and lacking a clear visual of what was happening inside. She could not see how wide the storm has become or how much section of the city this fog has taken over, but it was expanding. Evaluating the speed of its growth, in one hour, this storm would no doubt have half of Central and then more.

 _This is unbelievable..._ An assault like this, threatening the entire city with this storm and disregarding the civilians. Could this be the Red Faction's doing? Responsible for the decimation of villages and towns, the group she has been searching for? She will find out for herself, and she _will_ have her answers for this outrageous attack.

In no less than a few minutes, the storm was there before her, and without fear, she dashed into it. Prana of the thick fog surrounds her, swarming her body with a light tickle. Running through the blinding dark gray, there was a faint light ahead of her, she sprinted for it, and exited the fog.

Everything was suddenly cold.

Jeanne stopped herself, her feet skidding across the apparent existence of snow. It was as if she was transported to the north, but the area was still very much part of Central, the state of it like a harsh winter had arrived to Central early.

Snow fell from the brimming white sky, piling the streets and sidewalk. The buildings were encased by winter's hold, windows and doors boarded behind thick inches of ice, impossible to open by a human or a group of them. Paying close attention with her ears, Jeanne catches the faint cries for help from residents trapped within their homes. The ice itself was so thick that she could not see anything through the windows, and perhaps it was the same for those stuck inside the buildings, nothing but the frozen lock blocking their view for any hope of rescue.

It was shocking. Certainly, this is a Noble Phantasm. She picked up a handful of snow and concentrated. It felt so real, but what she had in her hand, what was around her...

Her first thought was a **Reality Marble** \- the projection of one's inner world and manifesting it onto reality, this would have been the first guess for any Servant. And yet, that was not what this was, not entirely. A Reality Marble wouldn't and shouldn't continue to expand, furthermore, it should not have involved places of the real world. Rather than actually involve the world within and outside its range, it should have been like being sent to another plain that symbolizes the mindset of the Servant who casted this. This was more of a makeshift of a Reality Marble instead the very true form, an illusive Reality Marble.

 _That's it. An illusion._

Manipulating and deceiving reality through the use of magecraft, and at this extent, it must be the work of a Caster.

Her senses rattled, pointing further inside this illusive weather. She ran forward, biting her lip as she hears the troubled people within these prisons locked in ice, and ignores the inactive, frozen gear-shaped machines buried within the snow, a destroyed golem beside it. She prepares herself for what she will eventually come across, and hurries.

* * *

The Lancer of the Blue Faction steps out of the fog, observing his surroundings from a roof that's suddenly covered in snow. Through careful observation, he acknowledged that this was not just snow that appeared from nowhere. The use of a powerful magecraft likely summoned by a Caster, its power a deception to the senses, convincing even a Servant of this unreal weather. It also seems the occupants within these buildings are stuck where they are, with ice encasing all the doors and windows, preventing anyone to leave or to see outside, a perfect opportunity for Servants to fight without witnesses.

His assumption was correct then, the Red Faction intends to initiate an all-out battle against the Blue Faction within this storm. So long as their fight does not cause any of the buildings to collapse, these conditions would also be satisfactory for Lancer, perhaps even allow the use of his Noble Phantasm, though if this snow follows logic, it will melt instantaneously should he activate it.

What's more, even with these people's eyes closed, it was evident that this way of attracting enemy Servants is without any actual considerations for what happens to the people. A reckless upfront so that they cannot be ignored, and that other opposing Servants would have to or eventually be part of it. An audacious form of invitation, there was no arguing that.

"But then again," Lancer spoke to himself, "I suppose this is one way to proceed."

This is a war after all. It has its rules, but it's a choice in itself to actually follow them, and the Red Faction has made their choice. Lancer is not angered at the actions of the Red Faction, nor was he without empathy for the people here, he is only a man who simply accepts what is as it is. Acting otherwise would not change anything here, or predict what the Red Faction has planned.

Winged golems flew across the sky, many of them holding the shoulders of their kind that are without the ability to fly, and some having a hold on the gears sent by one of their Casters of Blue, clawing the machines apart. It may have something to do with this weather, those gears were not designed to adapt in immense cold temperatures, though some golems fell after receiving enough damage by the contraptions.

He acknowledges the presence of multiple Servants, not just those of the Blue Faction who have now entered the area after he did. Setting his sight on the golems as his target, he resumes traveling to the next roof, and...

 **Servant ahead.**

He stops. There, on the roof two buildings away, his first opponent. The enemy Servant had silver-white hair, wearing a long veil with black triangular shapes at its ends. She wore a white two-piece outfit, with brown belts around her chest and hips. There were strange markings on her body that seemed to glow on her pale skin, and red eyes that bore only emptiness.

In her hand was what must be her weapon, but it was unlike anything Lancer has ever seen. A sword it would appear, with a sharp design of the black handle, and a tri-color of red, blue, and green as the metal and blade of the sword. It looked odd, so strangely advanced that it appeared to be out of this world or the world Lancer is from. He was unfamiliar with what exactly the type of weapon she held, but that alone should tell him that this contraption is dangerous, as dangerous as the woman who has not greeted Lancer with a single word, but somehow spoke volumes with her silence alone.

"Your eyes..." He said, his steely gaze meeting her emotionless stare. "Those are the eyes of someone who knew only how to live as a machine."

No words in response. Instead, the Saber of Red lifted her tri-colored sword, the end of the blade pointing at Lancer.

"...Enough is said?" Lancer also raised his weapon, agreeing to meet her with his spear. "However you are content with then. I, Lancer of Blue, shall fight you."

On the roof of the building that separated them, they leapt to it. The distance between them quickly closes, and the first strike of their weapons rung like bells in the snow-filled air.

* * *

One golem, ten feet tall, was carved through and cut down in a swift, relentless motion done by a sword, wielded by the Knight of Rebellion. At its fall, she marches over the remnants of the golems crumbled form, four more of these grounded creatures released by the flying versions of themselves fifty feet in front of her.

"What do you say, Saber?" The black horse trotted beside her as the young Rider addresses her, "Why don't we see which one of us will take down these golems the fastest?"

"Pfft! Don't lob me into your childish game...and I would obviously win, so why bother?"

The young Rider smiles, "Action speaks louder than words. I know that's how you are, but I wonder if that's the kind of leader you'll be?"

Without waiting for an answer to his question, a question that startled Mordred, Rider's horse charges for one of the golems, his sword pulled out from its sheathe. The targeted golem raises its arm to strike, but Rider's animal rushes through it before it could bring down it's fist, crushing the armor of the golem by the hooves of the horse.

"-! Confounded-! We'll see whose actions speaks the loudest!" Mordred ran towards the other golems. Breaking through it's rocky exterior in one swing of her sword, another swing and she cut the body in half. She avoided a punch from the second golem who thought itself clever to catch her from behind, and she returned the gesture with a sharp pierce and slice from her weapon that separates the golem's arm from its shoulder. Her sword, along with Mordred herself, bulldozed into the golem's chest. These creatures were well-constructed and durable to an extent, true, but these mere living rocks can never hope to withstand Mordred's strength.

Rider's mount had kicked the remaining golem onto the street, a final blow that destroyed its chest after he had bestowed the creature with multiple stabs from his sword and slicing off its head. He looked over the golems Mordred had dealt with, merely chunks and pebbles they were now.

"You're always so angry with your attacks," he voiced his notice.

Mordred pulled her sword from the torso of the golem, "If it means these creatures will be nothing but bits, what's there to complain?"

"Nothing wrong with it. Fighting with your heart into it makes you human!" He cheered as if that was worth congratulating her for.

The Knight of Rebellion scoffed as she kicked the defeated dead creature of rocks aside, "I'm far from being a _human_."

"Not literally, no. But a leader whom others can understand and see how she strives, it's something to have." Rider thought for a moment, "Still, maybe not let too much of it go, my own teacher would scold me whenever I act impulsively."

"Do I need to _make_ you shut up?" Mordred looks at Rider, the tense grip to her weapon kept. Though not outright threatening Rider, she was ready to if the boy pushes to be an annoyance again. "Do you ever stop talking?"

An idea shone in the boy's eyes, "That's something we can work on! A king should know how to speak to his people!"

"I don't need lessons from a kid, regardless of what you were in your adult life," who does this brat think he is? Thinking he can tell her what to do? "Now for the last time, quiet," She looked ahead of her, and saw more golems coming their way.

She grinned viciously, "These golems are a nuisance, and I will enjoy tearing them apart."

"Scary..." The young Rider comments, "...And aren't you younger than me? Technically?" If anything, he should be the one to call Mordred _kid_ , though he would bet that won't go well if he actually says it while she is in ear-shot. He eyes the flying golems, nine of them with wings arriving, four of them carrying flightless golems - more foot soldiers. "We'll have to finish our chat later then, let's hope the Caster from our side will send us support soon."

Finally, Mordred will have a moment without the bothersome kid Servant - is this really the supposedly famous conqueror who had a mind to rule the world? Well, for a man who had such a ridiculous goal, must be a ridiculous man. Though Alexander has proven himself capable despite being in his child form, he has his moments of being irritably cheeky, she could only imagine how much worse his grown up version must be.

She thought back on his mention of their Caster - one of them at least. To be frank, Mordred has no trust in the witch, something about that Caster in purple just rubs her the wrong way, and even if she couldn't prove it, Mordred knows that she's being watched at times by that woman, as if the knight was a matter of personal interest to be fiddled with. No, Mordred does not like or trust that Caster at all.

But she's an asset to this faction, and up against these golems that will no doubt be plenty more further into this area, Mordred will just have to wait and see if the witch will prove her word of reliability. Not that it would actually sway Mordred's opinion of her, so long as the feeling of eyes dressing her like a porcelain doll never leaves.

* * *

A hooded woman in a purple dress and black cloak was alone in a room, watching through a glass ball that showed her a vision of what was within the storm in Central, although rather tricky due to the Caster of Red's own competence, she managed to find a frequency, noted the impressive magecraft of the false winter, and then counted the golems. An army of them most definitely, but she has one as well, all ready for her to release.

She changes the vision with a wave of her hand, the ball revealed the sewers that was below the area swarmed by the expanding storm, it was there that all sorts of creatures defined as abominations roamed and guarded the pathway that led to the creator of her Master; _Father_. It was security at its most vicious, where any unlucky individual who thinks to travel there for whatever reason would be quickly torn apart and eaten by these beasts, their blood left on the walls, walkway and water.

She looked through the crowd of monsters, and only pays attention to the creatures that was of her creation. Familiars made from simple bones which to her pleasure - and undeniably questioning how - her Master's group was able to provide, as well other ingredients to make these familiars be useful enough against the golems.

What the Dragon Tooth Warriors lack in great strength that these golems possess, their numbers and quickness can overwhelm their enemies. However, no familiar she can possibly create will ever stand a chance against a Servant, that is why her Dragon Tooth Warriors main objective is to keep these golems away from the Blue Faction Servants while they fought against the Red Faction.

 **"Go,"** She whispers into the ball. The Dragon Tooth Warriors all rattled at their awake, and began to move. Within that storm, there were sewer entrances on the streets, pavement, and other places, these will be where the Dragon Tooth Warriors will leave out from and join the battle.

 _"Medea. I'm hearing Medusa is having some trouble against these golems,"_ a woman's voice spoke in Medea's head, _"Nothing too bad for her to handle on her own, but it would be preferable that nothing takes her attention should she come across a Servant."_

"I've already sent the Dragon Tooth Warriors," answered the Caster of Blue. "With Archimedes' contribution in their build, these warriors should be able to fly after those winged golems. They will arrive within that storm shortly."

 _"Good. Could you also come here and see to Father? The crystal ball you've given us lets us see outside the storm clear enough, but trying to look inside of it..."_

"Yes. The Red Faction's Caster is causing a disturbance of whoever tries to sneak a look, an illusionist I'd imagine. But I can get through to it, I'll be right over-"

There was a hum inside her skull, an alarm was triggered. Someone has disturbed one of her Bounded Fields, set where no one should be too close to. Quickly she changes the vision of the glass ball, a building comes into show.

"...Lust. I'm detecting two people lurking around the fifth laboratory."

 _"Two people?"_

Medea enhances the image, "A boy with blonde hair in a braide, and a man in full-body armor. They're looking around the building," she observes their behaviors, "They seem interested to get in."

 _"A blonde boy and an armored man you say?...The stories of the Elric brothers nosiness are true after all."_

So her Master knew who they were. By how Lust said it, these brothers are rather popular, but Medea caught on to the homunculus' tone, these boys were of particular interest, something that a "guest" of theirs shares, that neither she nor Medusa, or probably any of the Servants know exactly why that is. "These are "important people" then, I take it."

 _"Yes."_ Her Master sighs, _"And we have four guards in there who does not know that."_ Excluding the one soldier standing at the entrance of the lab. He was there so to be a visible sign that no one is to enter that place. The _real_ guards hid within the building, guards that were once humans, dangerous criminals who were condemned to face punishment, but instead, were given another purpose, stationed at this lab to face and kill any intruders.

Lust continues, _"It would be rather...inconvenient, should those boys be killed."_

"I can spare a few familiars to deal with this, although that soldier at the front would get in the way." It wouldn't be that big of a problem, but Medea would rather not trouble herself with her familiars restraining the man and having to erase his memory later after these brothers are taken care of. It would be easier to deal with this herself. "Perhaps I should go instead."

 _"Hold that thought..."_ There was a moment of silence. After a minute, Lust's voice returns. _"No need. Envy and I will handle this. If the brothers reputation precedes them, they might be able to hold off against the guards for a while. Father needs you here to create more of your familiars, and to come discuss with him, Shirou, and Archimedes a possible way to disband that storm."_

"I understand. I'll see to your Father right away."

Medea ceases the picture view of the brothers who have just discovered a way in - the one in armor supported the little one into climbing over the wall. After one more look of her Dragon Tooth Warriors heading for the exit point with haste, Medea deactivated the glass ball and left the room, making her way to her Master's Father who should only be two hallways away in this underground lair of his.

* * *

Another piercing blow through the winged golem's chest by the thrust of the green-haired Rider's spear, his three horses trampling over a dozen of these creatures, crushing their wings in mid-air and causing them to fall. He had separated from his fellow Rider of Blue he flew into this fog-surrounded area with, and is now trying to find some joy in destroying these golems, but they were so easy it was dull. Eventually, he lost interest in the golems and begun searching for a Servant of Red. His eyes searched every roof as his chariot flies over them, and spotted the sparks and colors of weapons clashing from a distance.

He recognized Lancer of Blue, a Servant of equal great strength as the green-haired Rider himself, combating against what must be a Saber. For their battle to not be done already is a testament to the Servant of Red's power if she is able to catch up with someone like that Lancer. However, the Saber's weapon was immensely strange. Beside it's three colored blade, the way it moved, she wasn't simply swinging that sword, that weapon-

Rider paused, a sensation reaches him. He looked below, and grinned. Finally! An opponent for himself! But would this Servant of Red bring any sort of a challenge? If this opponent does not have the necessary requirement to cut through his "armor", like the Lancer he fought two weeks ago had, there's no real hope of winning against someone like him, and their best chance to leave so much as a scratch was to seek for his weak point.

Even then, he isn't only famed for his invincible body, but his might and skills, taught by the best teacher who was known well for raising and teaching other great heroes such as Hercules, Jason, Castor, Asclepius, and of course, Achilles himself.

One of the many Riders of Blue, the famous Greek warrior during the Trojan War, that is who he is. A man who strived to be a hero even if it means living a short life, this is his only wish. He had no regrets following this path, and he will continue this path even if it lasts him this whole war or a day, to keep the promise he made to his mother, and a chance to fight other powerful warriors in a world that's not his.

Eager to meet his opponent, Achilles held tightly to his spear and hopped off from his chariot. The three horses and his ride vanished in a mist of gold as Achilles's feet were upon the roof, and he looked at his enemy.

With strikingly red hair in a ponytail, the Servant of Red wore a flaming orange robe of Far Eastern designs, with black sleeves, trousers, and black shoes. The corner of his eyelids was highlighted with red eyeliner, as for his eyes, they were focused and held an intensity, but his posture was calm with his arms behind his back. He was also without a weapon, which was very odd as he is now currently facing a Servant who has his weapon at hand already.

"I was hoping I might find something more interesting to fight," Achilles spoke. "But I wonder if that thing might be you?"

"A Rider, I presume?" The Servant of Red spoke, pulling a smirk that was either amused or intrigued by Achilles's comment. "You bid your mount away. Intending to use it as a last resort against me?"

"Nah, I just thought it was unnecessary. If I'm only fighting one guy, it'll be such a waste to bring it out. I'd much rather use it against all eight of you at once," Achilles casually rested his spear against his shoulder, "In fact, you might want to call out your friends if you want to go up against me."

The Servant of Red chuckled, "They would just get in the way, and if you have that much confidence, then I'd rather see your strength for myself."

A fellow spirited fighter. This should be good, that is if this Servant of Red will survive for long. The Rider of Blue arched his green eyebrow as his eyes sought for something on the enemy Servant, "So what are you anyway? I don't see a weapon on you."

The Servant of Red slid his left foot behind his right heel, "I am one of the Lancers of my group."

"A Lancer huh?" Fighting two Lancers in a row, who would have expected this? Achilles spun his spear and readies himself into a battle stance. "Well? Go ahead and summon your weapon, I'll wait for you." He imagined that it wouldn't be any more fun to fight an unarmed man.

But the Lancer of Red refuses. "Actually, I also decided to set aside my signature weapon." He brought up his hands, clenching one fist, "It's a personal inquiry of mine, a question of: would I even _need_ my spear against you? If you want me to show you my weapon, then force me to. Display your power, and I may go all out on you."

While almost not as shamelessly boastful as Achilles', Lancer shares a similar open confidence in his skills, and his arrogant challenge triggered a good-hearted laugh from the chariot rider, "If that's how you want to play...I'll have you bring out your spear this second! Lancer!"

Achilles dashed forth. The silver point of his weapon shot for the Lancer of Red's heart. Not only was Achilles known for his _invincibility_ , strength and skill, he had been recognized as the fastest of his time. He could appear in front of an enemy and struck them with a fatal blow before they could even block - which would have been futile. A Servant would have to rely on their great instincts or reflexes to try and stop his spear, and even then, a hit would have reached and leave them with a wound.

However, to his surprise, Lancer of Red deflected his spear with a chop of his _bare hand_ , not a drop of blood spilled. Had Lancer struck the flat of his spear? Or were his hands as strong as Achilles's own blade?

The Rider of Blue adjusted his spear and swung for the neck, but Lancer of Red swatted that away too, his palm hitting between the blade and pole. A fist shot for Achilles's face and the Rider braced it. If not for his invincibility, at worst, he would have gained a broken nose, for a human, their skull would have been crushed.

No damage was actually obtained for the more than impenetrable Rider, but the force of the blow almost pushed him off the building. He dug the ball of his feet into the ground to halt himself, and lunged for the Lancer of Red again. Another thrust of his spear, and Lancer moved to the side. Achilles followed with his weapon, seeking to pierce it's way through the torso-

And then Lancer of Red was gone. Any sight or sound of him, vanished. His presence, completely disappeared. _What the hell? Where did he-?_

An impact directly to his chest. A powerful punch from an invisible fist that broke through his steel armor, and Achilles flew. Over two buildings, he crashes into an empty tower.

"...That attack would have destroyed your heart even for a Servant's body," Lancer re-appears, like a transparent veil uncloaking his existence with his fist raised, "but you actually have another set of defense protecting you?"

From the fallen rubble, Achilles emerges, unharmed, and a puzzled frown on his features. _...What he did just then. Presence Concealment?_

It was a fair assumption. Only one class derived in a specific ability from working in the shadows and hiding from even the most keenest of heroes. However, what Achilles hadn't considered before meeting the Lancer of Red was that the use of **Presence Concealment** may not be necessarily restrained solely for an Assassin Servant, or rather that there are other ways to hide one's presence not purely based from this skill.

There are Noble Phantasms with a power to guise the visibility of a person by the wear of a mystical cloak, or depending on the hero, they may possess an ability similar to an Assassin but are of a different class, able to go unnoticed until the moment they strike, no matter how open they are and how close they are getting. In Lancer's case, what he had done was not the standard ability used by an Assassin. Even if he was summoned as one as he is applicable to be, he would still lack the skill of Presence Concealment, which would make him a most unusual Servant. How he would even be exceptionally possible to be summoned as an Assassin is due to his personal accomplishment of killing his target swiftly with his own two hands, and a technique that renders him invisible to his opponents.

The achievement of causing the outward appearance to lack discernibility and blend with the surroundings - this is what is called a **Sphere Boundary**. Only a few knew how to hone this ability, specially used by the greatest masters of Martial Arts through a form of meditation. Not only will this use provide him a hidden existence that surpasses an A-rank Presence Concealment, but this technique will remain active even as he attacks, unlike other Assassin Servants who will, without choice or control, be revealed the moment they strike to kill. His opponents would die never seeing the attacker inflicting a single fatal blow, making the Lancer - the legendary martial artist; Li Shuwen, a truly dangerous and deadly adversary.

So it was an interesting sight for Shuwen to see his fatal hit not leave so much as a scratch on Achilles. Not winded at all, a body that allowed no wounds. Shuwen was not outright shocked, and no doubt or question came if he may actually win this battle. Whether the Rider's previous advice of not facing him alone was valid, the Lancer of Red would have still refused to actively look for support even if he were to know beforehand of his opponents apparent invulnerability.

Nothing could intrigue him more than finding a way to pierce through this barrier skin of his enemy. No matter how good of a defense, there is always an opening for him to strike and for his opponent to die. But this was all that was required for him to proceed much more seriously now.

"I may have to use it after all," the Lancer of Red unclenched his hand, prana swarms beneath his palm, and his weapon was finally summoned. A black pole and a steel blade with a golden rod in between, and a red fabric esthetic attached to it. "Come Rider of Blue, this is a war where warriors will see who among them is the better fighter, and whether you are made of iron or diamonds, I will _crush_ through it."

The fierce eagerness of his gritted teeth stretches the face of Achilles, he swat away the structures that fell in front of him in one slice of his weapon, and he launched himself for the Lancer of Red once again.

* * *

Chains roped around the throat of a flying golem before she pulled it with her Monstrous Strength, flinging it towards another winged golem. The collision caused the creatures' wings to snap, and they fell onto the streets in shattered boulders. A horde of more flying golems came for her. Medusa steered her Pegasus higher to the sky, close to the grey fog, then descended into the horde. Like a shooting star, her Pegasus mowed through twenty golems, a blink of light in the air. The Pegasus white feathered wings glided its body back up, and turned to see its work.

These golems weren't a problem to Medusa at all, but they are a nuisance. Lust has already informed her of Medea's skeleton army and were now about to emerge from the sewers within this storm. Soon these pests will be dealt with, and she can focus on a particular annoyance whose been persistently trying to gain her attention.

A form flew over her head, her Pegasus ferociously neighed before taking Medusa to the sky again. Though her Pegasus flew so fast that no normal horse or even the fastest runner could catch up, the persisting enemy Rider of Red's flying steed was just as so. A combination of griffin and horse, with the Servant of pink hair and ambiguous gender settled upon it.

"Ooooh! That's a pretty Pegasus you have there!" Said the Hippogriff Rider of Red. "But I wonder which of our winged friends is the better flyer?"

Astolfo's head moved to dodge a needle-dagger shot for his head, and ducked under the chains connected to the weapon. His Hippogriff soars ahead of her, "Ah well, I was hoping our animal companions could be friends, but there's no avoiding this. I'll tell you this much though, your Pegasus is pretty, but my Hippogriff is the best!"

He proceeds to demonstrate by continuously flying ahead of her. They flew across the cold sky, Astolfo in the lead and Medusa attempting to pass him, but no matter how much she tries, the Rider of Red's Hippogriff blocks her way. Preventing her escape as another group of winged golems comes after her from behind. Trapped between the Rider of Red and the pursuing flying golems, a plan must be formulated, and an idea came to the Servant of Blue.

The chains rattled in Medusa's clutches as she had her Pegasus fly upwards, Astolfo follows her along. The golems, with their heavy body, could not match the speed both the Riders of Red and Blue was reaching. Still they pursue, chasing after the Rider of Blue even as she grows increasingly far, until ultimately stopped when a burst of light expulsed between these creatures and blown into pieces, shot from below by an ally Servant of the Blue Faction.

Medusa seizes the opportunity of no distractions, and combatted against the Rider of Red as they flew higher and higher. Her rope of chains thrown to capture the Rider of Red, and Astolfo struck it away with his lance. A needle-dagger shot for his heart, and again it was deflected. It was attack after attack, defense after defense.

That's when Astolfo made a mistake, although he acknowledged that they were flying up, he'd forgotten about the fog the Caster of Red surrounded this section of the city with, and was only reminded once his vision of the winter sky was clouded by the thick gray and prana. Before he could have his Hippogriff drop itself down, he heard the choir of jingle bells that were Medusa's chains, and the sounds of his Hippogriff's distress.

Being able to see at least his hands, he peers through the fog and upon his animal, where a rope of chain has trapped around the neck. Sensing the Hippogriff jerk behind the Rider of Red, he turns around and reached out. Another rope of chain in his touch, around the waist of his winged companion.

He hurriedly acts to remove the chains, but they were in a tight hold, and then his view of the world then became clearer, realizing he was out of the fog. A black sea of stars above him, warmth greeting him, but the rushing wind constant. Astolfo looks for the woman Rider of Blue, and found her Pegasus.

But no Rider.

 _Huh?_

His Hippogriff screeched, Astolfo grasps to the chains tightening around his Hippogriff as he adjust his animal to stop flying upwards, and found where his opponent went. Chains circled around both of the Rider of Blue's arms, the very same chains that has his Hippogriff, holding her as she swung herself over like on a swing, she then promptly kicks Astolfo off his steed.

The Hippogriff felt the absence of his Rider and an unfamiliar person on his back. It shakes itself to remove Medusa as the Rider of Blue grasps for a control. The Hippogriff spun its body, and smacked Medusa off of itself with a swat of its wing. Her Pegasus, in retaliation, flew itself at the Hippogriff. Cries and shouts emitted from the two mythical creatures, a hoof jamming into the Hippogriff's chest, a claw deepening itself into the flesh of the flying horse.

There was only calmness as Astolfo fell, looking ahead and seeing his and the Rider of Blue's steed tackling each other until they pry themselves away and dove for their Riders. "You sure can see well even while wearing that mask," he idly comments to Medusa who fell beside him.

Another dagger shot for him, and another deflection from his lance. "I'll be sure not to underestimate you then!"

A carefree smile on his pretty face as he and Medusa drops back into the storm, cold embracing them once more in their five hundred foot fall. Before their complete descent to greet their ground with their stronger than human body, their respective animals catches them, and again they flew. And again they fought.

* * *

Seeking for cover and a place where he has a vantage point of all the city blocks, the Archer of Blue; Tawara Touda moves from one roof to the next, his long bow at hand. He spotted multiples of flying golems chasing after the Pegasus Rider of Blue who was occupied with one of the Riders of Red. Naturally, he offered his assistance, firing one arrow that completely dishevels the horde upon its explosion, destroying some of them. He kept this position, taking away the golems focus on Medusa until finally capturing their attention.

Twenty golems flew down for Tawara. He lines up seven arrows on one string of his bow, but as he pulled, there was a sound of disturbance somewhere near him, and a noise of metal hitting the ground.

From the sewer drains with it's grate forced open from underneath, and from gates that led to underground, Dragon Tooth Warriors emerge. Each brandishing rugged weapons of swords and bows. Scurrying to the streets, their backs suddenly propped, and the stems of their wings unbend. Propellers in the form of miniature gears spinning in between the membranes. With their ability to fly powered by the gears of their wings made from bones, they were off the ground, and faces the in-coming swarm of golems head-on.

Tawara watches the golems and skeletons entangle themselves in a brawl, and saw more Dragon Tooth Warriors arriving from the streets and elsewhere. In time, these Dragon Tooth Warriors will handle the golems, meaning he may put his focus into finding a Servant of Red.

As if to actually answer this, an arrow built out of prana shot for him from a tall building two miles away. Tawara ducked and rolled to the side as more arrows came for him. With his seven arrows still at hand, he pulls them against the bowstring and releases. Each arrow struck each attack with precise aim, like fireworks of flames and power scattered in the sky.

Tawara's view of the enemy Servant was blocked temporarily by the results of their arrows colliding, but he at once ready his next arrow, and dodged another few attacks shot through the smoke. He fired another arrow, and watched it soar for the enemy Servant.

Another collision of arrows between the Archers of Red and Blue, and when the residue of their attacks faded, Tawara saw the face of Archer of Red. He smiled, a smile which the Archer of Red Arash could see, and the enemy Servant returned the expression in kind.

 _Let's see which of our arrows land the first hit._ It was a thought both of them shared, between two cheerful Archers.

* * *

The streets were empty of pedestrians and soldiers, all cleared as the Fuhrer ordered them to be. All the people who have witnessed or were near the section of Central City surrounded by the abnormal storm have been escorted to a safer district, but there lies another reason for deserting this area that led to the trouble bestowed by the Red Faction.

The Saber of King Bradley sprinted down the vacant road, one of the last Servants of the Blue Faction to arrive at the storm, followed by Bradley's second Servant Assassin who should be nearby. It would have been preferable to reach the storm faster than how she is now, her tremendous power comes at the cost of her agility which, were she in a different form, would have been apparent but her power restrained.

Truthfully, she was not her original self, so much so that she would rather have others, who may refer to her by true name in private, to instead call her as Alter or Arturia Alter, because while she is the same person as King Arthur in her world, she is also not.

As Arturia Alter, she is much stronger than her original self could ever be. Without mercy, without hesitation to strike down the enemy she may outright call lesser and weak beings - such a mindset was so unlike her previous self, those who knew her in life would believe that she has turned into a different entity entirely. The King of Knights was a calculating figure and may appear distant, that is not false, but there was still a sense of warmth she could envelope the room with her presence alone. Arturia Alter does not have such warmth, hers was cold, and rather than calculating, it's ruthlessness she now upholds as a knight.

If she had been like this while ruling her kingdom, it would have most likely not ended the way it did. That was the problem she understood completely, she failed to save her country because she was weak. The truth of the matter is that for a hero to strive, they are not to be loved or praised, but to be hated and feared, that any who thinks to challenge her will regret it as soon as she shows them her blackened blade. The issue was that her old self was naive and a fool, and so after she has been summoned the way she is now, she was corrected.

Her goal remained the same, if possible, she would still strive to change the fate of her kingdom, but unlike her original self who had an idea of how this can happen, Arturia Alter has her own way. She will go back in time and rule again, but this time, she will rule how she should have all along - a tyrant who accepts no failures, and no remorse for anyone who stands in her way, not even if they were her own knights or kin.

Perhaps this was the king her country needed after all.

She arrived at last, the storm's presence crawling towards her. With a firm hold to her weapon, Arturia Alter ran into the fog. She did not flinch when further she proceeds, her surroundings was coated in winter. Clearly this is the work of a great magecraft - the works of a Caster Servant. She senses and hears the battle all around her, and looked to the sky. The Pegasus Rider of Blue was against the Hippogriff Rider of Red, and it appears Medea's winged Dragon Tooth Warriors have come, battling against the flying golems.

She rushed forth, searching for an enemy to slay. If possible, she would seek out for the Servant who summoned this storm, their deaths will surely have their magic fade away, but Casters are normally cunning and cautious, and they would know better than to fight against a Saber who has high resistance to Magic. It would be difficult to search for the Servant then, she will have to rely on Bradley's Assassin who may have a better chance, if not an expertise in finding his target.

There was a noise, the sounds of chains rattled, and in the corner of Arturia Alter's eye, an attack comes for her. Arturia Alter kicks off the ground and thrown herself aside, avoiding a massive ball of spikes that crushed the ground.

The enemy Servant rushes for her, dragging a chain attached to another ball of spikes with her thin yet muscular arms. Arturia stood her ground, and knocked the flail away with her sword. The Dark King of Knights easily concluded this Servant to be of the Red Faction. The Servant of Red had a youthful face and form, white soft hair, and an armor around her chest and hips. Although the young Servant has a lovely face, there was anger and a slippage of sanity in her glare, the trait a Berserker would have.

It was also a look very similar to a certain knight in her faction. The knight she knew in life and has met again in this world. The traitor, who was speechless when she saw her changed king, and how after nothing was visually expressed about the Knight of Rebellion's presence, the treacherous knight's face morphed into the anger this enemy Servant shows, right before rage consumed her and attacked Arturia Alter.

 _A reckless, bad-temper child_ , Arturia Alter evaluated her opponent.

The Berserker of Red threw her flail again. Though it was a large and heavy thing that can kill a Servant with a weak body, Arturia Alter was not such Servant. She clashed against the flail again, a second ball of spikes went for her side. With her feet firmly in place, Arturia Alter blocked the flail, the ground cracked in her stand, but otherwise she was unmoved, and pushed the weapon away.

"-Tch!" Berserker of Red pulled her flail and spun it over her head, building momentum for a more powerful assault. "I will crush you!"

Arturia Alter leapt to the side, avoiding the crushing blow of the flail's descent. The dark knight responded coldly, "You are not the first fool to try."

* * *

The second Rider of Red stood secluded away from the fight occurring in her sight. Her bow and arrow at hand, waiting and watching if any Servant of her faction requires support. So far, nearly every Servant is occupied with something or the other.

She sees Saber of Red combating with Lancer of Blue. Lancer of Red has found himself an interesting opponent against a Rider of Blue - a powerful warrior that one is, she was unable to shake off the familiarity this Rider of Blue was emitting, his fighting-spirit so akin to another warrior she knew in life, the very warrior who defeated and killed her.

Their other Lancer of Red - the one who wielded two spears, was dealing with the recently joined group of skeleton warriors that came from underground, he was on the road where a Saber and another Rider of Blue were getting closer to - she should keep an eye on them, the two-spear wielding Lancer may be in need of her assistance.

The Rider of Red on his Hippogriff seems to be having fun against a third Rider of Blue on a white winged mount, speeding across the sky and destroying any flying golems or skeleton warriors unfortunate enough to be in their way. The Archers of Red and Blue were occupied with each other in their competitive hail of arrows, and it seems another Saber of Blue has arrived, intersected by their Berserker of Red.

Berserker of Red, otherwise known as her maddened sister.

The second Rider of Red, once Queen of the Amazons; Hippolyta, watches in concern for her younger sister who has sadly been consumed by hatred and madness. Her sister's demise was one she understood to be filled with distraught. Hippolyta had died before her sister did, but she was able to know the fate of her sibling from the Throne of Heroes. The light, joyful reunion Hippolyta felt when she met with her sister again was dashed away once she acknowledged the story of her sister's death by the hands of a warrior, and her sister confirms this with more detail than what the Throne was able to provide.

Hippolyta wishes to soothe her younger sister of her rage and despair, but it was impossible even for the previous Amazon Queen. There was only one way for her sister to find peace, and that was to challenge the man who killed her, a rematch against the man who was responsible for her current state and the form she has taken.

Whether this man is a Servant participating in the Grand Holy Grail War of another dimension, or perhaps may actually be one of these Servants they are currently fighting, Hippolyta will do whatever she can to support her sister and save her from the grief of humiliation. As a Servant of great power, multiplied by her strength as an Amazon and having fought against Greece's most powerful hero, Hippolyta might have what it takes to combat most of the Servants of the Blue Faction within this storm, but beside the order strictly given by her Master, she will withheld her Divine-like strength for the one hero her sister wishes to kill.

At the same time however, she worries what will happen if Penthesilea were to meet that man again.

Far away from Hippolyta, the Caster of Red sat on the ledge of a high building, watching everything in contemplation. It was a spectacle between powerful heroes to be sure, not something the Caster would personally cause, but far be it for them to question their Master's tactic. All this is just phase one, and phase two was just right around the corner.

A black bird flew by, it circled the Caster before perching on their dainty shoulder. The Caster of Red takes heed of it quietly, receiving a message through unspoken means, and a delightful smile adorns their features. The crow takes to the air again, and Caster stood up.

"So you've come, Ruler," they look to certain way, their eyes on the road where their guest of honor will appear soon.

* * *

The storm harboring the illusion of winter continues to extend its slow reach. Sixteen Servants are at battle, eight of them representing each of their faction, and one Ruler Servant that grows closer to the fray while trapped civilians remain within their ice-caged buildings. The war is observed from afar, by those who hid underground, and by those who hid elsewhere. Yes, the rest of the Red Faction were watching as well.

The clash between opposing forces is about to escalate. The Red Faction intends to advance with their strategy, the Blue Faction resolves to stop them, and the Ruler Servant is determined to be in the midst of it all. This is the war she had feared, the anomaly the Red Faction has taken advantage of, and what the Blue Faction will stand against, but with Masters carrying ulterior motives of their own.

Tonight, however, another strange event will occur. An oddity no one could have ever predicted, and it will embark inside a seemingly abandoned laboratory where a lone State Alchemist investigates.

* * *

 **In the Grand Holy Grail War, another irregularity will shine at the fifth laboratory...**


	10. The Summoning

**Hello everyone! Here's the chapter I'm sure a lot of you have been waiting for. Thank you all so much for your support! Please leave me more of your thoughts about this story!**

* * *

Chapter 10: The Summoning

For a laboratory that's supposedly abandoned and meaningless, someone is certainly making an effort to keep this place off-limits. One guard at the front, and barbed wires over the walls. Nothing too complex for the Elric Brothers to bypass.

But discretion is important. Even with a State Alchemist among them, they most likely wouldn't be allowed in. With the guard present, they couldn't use their Alchemy or else the alchemical reaction will attract his attention, only other option was to approach with stealth. Getting over the barbed wires was easy for a boy and his automail grip, helping Alphonse climb over after him. However, the door into the fifth laboratory was blocked off. They'll have to find some way to get inside unnoticed.

That's when Edward saw the vent, he was just the right size to fit and crawl through it, but because Alphonse was too large, the younger brother will have to remain outside while Edward investigates the building by himself. Both brothers wished each other good luck, and Edward enters. There was no telling what awaits inside, it could be danger for all he knows, but the thought of danger had never been enough to fret Edward away. He will see to it, the secret this building is hiding; the truth within the truth as Marcoh has told him.

It was a tight squeeze, but Edward coped with it. Were he any bigger, he wouldn't be able to crawl through at all, so he found it rather fortunate to have this small body of his...

 _...DAMMIT! I JUST CALLED MYSELF SHORT!_

After a mental breakdown and berating his treacherous thought, Edward reached the end of the vent, pushing the grate and his way out. He drops down, the hallway was lifeless, empty of anyone, but the lights were on, and not a speck of dust anywhere. This place has been used. Walking down the hall, he found a door. Placing his chances to find something in the first room he comes across, he opens the door.

"...What the...?"

It was a large circular room, pillars that were marked all over in white chalk transmutation circles in every corner, and on the ground, the largest transmutation circle out of the rest, drawn in blood. The very design of it was so strange and unfamiliar, he thought. But then there were plenty of different styles of Transmutation Circles, it was nothing to think about too much.

"This must be it," Edward knelt down to examine the largest circle, "This has to be the place where the Philosopher's Stones were made, using the lives of the prisoners."

"Smart kid, aren't you?"

He lurched to a stand, golden eyes widened at the voice that comes from another doorway in the room. "You sure got it all figured out just by looking at everything here."

A man in full-body armor revealed himself, like that of Alphonse, with a white cloth over the mouth and around the waist, and a sword in his hand. If the weapon isn't any indication that this man might be trouble, the Fullmetal Alchemist will eventually find out.

"Yeah, well, I'm just good like that," he said sardonically, but guarded, "Who are you?"

"Someone in charge of keeping watch of this place from curious brats like you," the man raised his weapon, "Let's just say my name is Number 48."

They circled around the large "Transmutation" Circle, assessing the strength of the other. "My orders are to dispose of anyone who wanders in here, poking their noses where they don't belong. Nothing personal kid."

Edward snorted, "Like I haven't heard that kind of talk before." Clapping his hands, a blade is transmuted from his automail arm, "I got questions I want answers to, and you're going to tell me."

"An Alchemist, huh?" 48 noted. "This ought to be interesting. Let's see what you got, kid."

Instantly, 48 was in front of him, having close the distant by a mere leap. There wasn't even time to gasp, Edward struck the sword away with his automail arm and barely ducked when the man's weapon move to slice his head. Another swing of the man's weapon and the State Alchemist adjusted to defend. Contact between blades, the Fullmetal Alchemist was pushed by 48's power to the other side of the room.

It was just like that night against the blue spearman. _He's so fast!...is he even human?_

"Not bad," 48 complimented. "And a prosthetic arm too. No matter, my sword can cut through flesh _and_ steel."

Adrenaline courses Edward's body as 48 closed their distance in a split second, a series of clashes between steel, the sword slowly chipping away the brand-new automail. This is going to be a challenge, more than what Edward was really prepared for, against a man with honed skills determined to kill him.

But he managed to survive a spear through the heart, and had fought with two men who had also been fast, if Edward was able to handle those situations despite how much he had his ass handed to him, he will take those fight as experience. He'll use it to his advantage, and so, he bravely faces the inhuman guard.

* * *

"Brother sure is taking a long time..." Alphonse said as he waited for Edward, wishing for the older brother's safety and return, oblivious of what was happening inside the laboratory.

There was a sound from the roof, creaking as a shadow cascades over the Alchemist's form.

"Huh?!" Alphonse looked up. A pair of glowing eyes from the helm of a man stares down at him, and a cleaver that glimmered in the moonlight.

The Alchemist leapt forth, just missing the sharp rugged edge of the cleaver that stabbed the ground, wielded by a man in full-body armor with a monster-like face for a helmet. The attacker sprung for Alphonse, a cleaver in each hand, and began attacking. They were fast assaults, but Alphonse's reaction matched its speed, and dodges every slice.

"You're pretty quick for your size," the attacker said, swinging his weapons. "That just makes killing you all the more worth it!"

Alphonse kicked the man's chest, creating distance between himself and his attacker, "Who are you?!"

"I'm number 66. That's the name they gave me when they had me work here," with an eager tone, he crossed his cleavers, a chilling noise of the blood stained weapons scratching together. "Now, why don't you stand there, and let me chop you up?"

Alphonse braced himself in a defensive posture, his attention solely on 66.

"Or maybe..." 66 said. "I let my friend do the work?"

The grass rustled from behind, a gasp left Alphonse once he turns around, he tried to move quickly, but a knife pierces through his side. If he had his original body, that would have cut into his flesh. Alphonse grabbed the knife-wielder's arm and threw him over his shoulder.

The second attacker flopped beside 66 with a yelp, "Whoa! He's pretty good." He stood back up, it was another man in full-body armor, slimmer than 66, a helmet with a face similar to 66. He glanced at his knife, checking for any blood he had hoped to draw, "Sorry 66, looks like I didn't get him."

"That's alright 57," the cleaver man said. "Now the both of us will have fun killing this kid! Come on, let's hear him scream!"

66 resumes for Alphonse with speed and killing-intent, madly slashing for the Alchemist. 57 dashed for the side, trying to pierce with his knife for flesh he believes to be there. While Alphonse would suffer no actual pain or threatening injuries should either of these men cut through him, enough damage to his armor will dampen his movements, and if either of them are lucky enough to hit his Blood Seal, Alphonse will die.

Although outnumbered by two to one, Alphonse held himself well against the two armored men. Not one to regularly brag about it, it was simply known that he was a better fighter compare to his older brother, never losing a match between himself and Edward. 57 attempted to slice through his back, but Alphonse saw him approach. Twisting his body, he grabbed 57's around the waist, then threw him against 66. The killers collided and tumbled away with a yell and a grunt.

"Grrr! Dammit! Stay still will you?!" Angered and frustrated at how unexpectedly stubborn is his victim-to-be, 66 pushes 57 off of him. He stood up and...noticed at once something was not right. He knew he must be standing, and yet he was still looking at the sky as if he was lying down - _oh_.

He reached for where his helmet should be, and found it was not on his body. His helmet had been knocked off, and the hollow inside of his body armor very apparent, shocking Alphonse, "You're empty!"

57 realized the problem and went to pick up 66's helmet up, handing it back to it's owner. "Interesting, isn't it?" 66 said, putting his helmet back in place between his shoulders, "There's a story behind this actually...it all started with a man name Barry."

From there, 66 began telling a tale about a butcher name Barry who grew tired of chopping up meat at his shop, and so turn to a murder-spree until he was caught, leaving behind 23 victims. He explained that Barry, for his evil deeds, was then prosecuted and sentenced to hang, and it would seem the world became a better place without the killer that no longer lived.

"But that's not the end of the story. Turns out, Barry didn't die. Instead, he resigns here, guarding this building, waiting patiently for any unlucky intruders for him to chop up. Only this time, he's without a body." 66 laughed maniacally, "Yes! That's right! You're looking at him! The one and only; Barry the Chopper! How does it feel to be near an infamous serial killer that terrorized Central?!"

"...Oh. Sorry, I've never heard of you."

The jaw of 66's helmet dropped.

"I'm from a little town in the east, so..." Alphonse then looked to 57, "And who might you be?"

"Huh? Me?" 57 pointed to himself, "Oh, well, if we're giving out names, I'm Ryan - Ryan Uriel. I'm also a serial killer like Barry. Killing is my hobby, and I have a preference in targeting women and children."

Although his spoken deeds were horrendous, how he says it casually was more than just strange and lack luster as he sheepishly rubs the back of his head out of human habit.

"I'm actually from out of town, but got transferred here and faced the same penalty as Barry. Also..." Ryan lifted his own helmet, "I don't have a body either! Isn't that awesome?!"

"Hey hey hey! Don't get side-tracked!" Barry fumed when the attention was not on him for long, and spoke to Alphonse once more, "Okay, so you haven't heard of me. Shouldn't you at least be scared by what you saw?! Not even a scream or an "Aah! What happened to your body, freak?!"

Alphonse removed his helmet and revealed his empty body. Barry shrieked, "AAH! What happened to your body, freak?!"

Ryan, however, reacted differently, "That is _so_ cool!" His eyes sparkled through the thin opening of his helmet. "You're just like us! Are you a killer too?"

The thought of being considered as one horrified Alphonse, "No way! I'm not a criminal!"

"Huh? Then what the hell happened to you?" Barry questioned.

"It's kind of a long story," Alphonse said, putting his helmet back on. "But basically, I lost my body, and my brother saved me by transferring my soul into this armor."

"Your brother..." All of a sudden, laughter builds from Barry. It was a laughter that Ryan recognized as that of a scheming tactic his fellow killer has in his wake, and so remained quiet, watching with interest as if a show was about to begin.

"Oh, right...your _brother_."

"What's so funny?" Alphonse asked, suspecting something bad was coming close.

"Oh nothing, just wondering how much of a victim you are..." Barry started, if he had his human face, he would have unveiled a cruel grin. "Like are you sure your _really_ related to your brother?"

* * *

Within the underground chamber beneath Central Command, Medea had accomplished adjusting the crystal ball into revealing a much clearer view of what was inside the storm with two other people beside her.

"This weather is an illusion, a most convincing one at that," said Medea. "It's very likely to be created by a Caster. It also appears that all eight Servants of the Blue Faction have entered the area, some of them up against a Servant of Red, and the Dragon Tooth Warriors are doing remarkably well against the golems, they should keep them busy for a while."

"What magnificent powers you Servants have..." Said the man in white. A mysterious being, and known to his Homunculi children and Servants as Father, sat in his throne at the center of his chamber. Grasping the crystal ball in his inhumanly pale hand, he observed the battle between Servants of the Red and Blue Faction, a mild emotion of intrigue.

"Normally, it would be concerning should _seven_ Servants be in one place and fight all at once. Here however, it's far beyond what every Magus fears," the boy of tan skin and white hair spoke. "Well, considering how many more Servants are in Amestris, I'm thankful that we only have _this_ many appear in the city. Although that storm is troubling..."

Father looks to the young priest, curious to hear more of his thoughts. "What do you recommend, Shirou?"

The boy named Shirou pondered, "It would be simple to rid this illusion by killing Caster. However, I don't imagine finding him would be easy."

"And with nearly all Servants of Blue occupied with the Reds, searching for our illusive Caster would be difficult," Medea stated. "Even if I were to spare a few familiars, he or she may be competent enough to destroy them without much trouble."

"We will have to leave Caster of Red to Bradley's Assassin then," concluded Shirou. "Still, who knows how long that will take? And if it means that all of Central will be overcome by this storm in the meantime..."

The doors to this chamber opens, another Servant enters. "Master..." He addresses the man in the chair. His appearance is akin to a scholar, with intelligent dark eyes and unkempt brown hair. Blacks sleeves and pants, a red vest around his waist with his chest bare, and gray pads over his shoulders. "I've come to report that most of my projectiles have been destroyed, however, I've already send more. They will have the essentials to function normally within that blizzard."

"Good. Come stay with us, Archimedes," Father invited his Servant. "We're discussing ways of how to refrain that storm from getting any bigger."

Archimedes nodded, "Indeed, perhaps if we were to create a barrier around the storm, we would be able to stop it's expansion."

"Will you be able to invent something of that caliber within a short amount of time?"

Archimedes smiled at his Master's question, "You won't have to wait for long. Once I saw that the storm was expanding, I've begun making adjustments to one of my current inventions. They will be what we need."

"You live up to your reputation, Archimedes," Shirou commended. "One of the most brilliant technicians in our world, having been in charge of protecting an entire city from powerful armies. A celebrated engineer, mathematician, and astronomer in human history."

"So I have seen..." Father said. He was referring to a vision he once had not so long after he obtained Archimedes, a dream a Master would receive about their Servant's past. It's quite useful to have powerful weapons at his disposal, it's even more to his liking that his weapon of defense is an intelligent one.

"I would think you, Shirou, would know so much about me from the Throne of Heroes," said Archimedes. "But then of course, only a _certain_ Servant class would know my name immediately at first glance."

"Speaking of which," Medea changes the image on the crystal ball. In it, they see Jeanne running down the snow-filled streets, "She's getting closer to the battle. The Red Faction hasn't made an attempt to kill her these last few weeks, that may change tonight."

Shirou frowned, "Ruler made herself clear where she stands in this war. If she were to discover us, it could cause some complications, and I'm not quite sure how she will react to you." He referred to Father. "She might be curious about your existence, and if she decides that you are an issue to the Holy Grail War, she will try to intervene against you."

There had been hopes that if Ruler were to accept the Blue Faction's offer of alliance, they would maneuver her to their liking, move her as one would for a chess piece on the board while they - the real players of this Grand War, remain out of sight. However, with Ruler insisting her neutral role, she may become a problem one way or the other.

Shirou examines the image of Jeanne, a troubled expression on her as she sprinted towards where the mass fighting is taking place, "If Ruler will not fight with us, she may become an obstacle that will hinder us, more precisely because of her _privileges_. I believe we should see this as the perfect opportunity to end Ruler, together with the Blue Faction."

A temporary truce to rid what Shirou believes to be a threat to his mission, a high hurdle upon the road he chose to walk on.

"I hear your concerns," Father said, his tone calming. "However, even though Ruler has denied joining our faction, with her having the Command Seals of all the Servants participating this war, she can still be of use to us. Do not worry, we will ensure that she will not discover us."

No matter his perceived reassurance, Shirou wasn't convinced. Nevertheless, the boy feigned belief and nodded.

A voice not belonging to either of them broke out, "Glorious! Truly glorious!"

Waltzing into Father's chamber was a bearded man of slightly messy, yet refine orange-brown hair, wearing a green coat, vest and dark brown pants with black boots and gloves. There is a book in his hand with a pen in his grip, scribbling down words in hasty passion. He shouted theatrically, "A dramatic epic unleashed! Sixteen Servants present, eight of ours combating in a desperate struggle to stop the storm before it consumes the entire city!"

Medea clicked her tongue at the sight of the Servant who's practically an embarrassment to Casters everywhere, "What do you want, Shakespeare? We're busy here."

"I've come to capture every moment of the side of war I'm among! Have every detail of the _story_ , scene by scene!" Shakespeare rambled, "With the premise that is the Grand War for the Holy Grail, it is a scenario that's novel-worthy! A potential to be published in two volumes! A third even!"

"You are a loon," Medea softly spoke her despised attitude against the writer. "Don't you have somewhere else to be?"

"Where else to go but here?" asked Shakespeare. "Outside, there's nothing but that fog that blocks me of all the delicious action. Besides, I've no idea where my Master Envy is. He told me he's off with Lust somewhere to deal with a problem we apparently have. Anything to comment on that?"

"Nothing to worry about," Father tells Shakespeare. "We simply have a few curious people who got lost in one of our buildings. I've sent my children to meet them. Rest assured that they'll be escorted out safely."

* * *

The Caster of Red waited with a smile on their face. The Ruler Servant was just a few blocks away, word of her presence was already sent to the other Servants of Red. Now all that is left is for Ruler to arrive. The Caster of Red looks forward to it immensely, not that it was a Ruler Servant coming, but by Diarmuid's confirmation, it was the Holy Maiden of France herself, the flag bearer from the Hundred Year War in their world, and the source of great admiration for someone Caster knew. Jeanne D'Arc.

Most definitely, the Caster of Red would love to meet her. One of the reasons was that it was because of her tragic demise that led them to meet with one of their most promising student. They wondered though if Jeanne knew what happened to him, her close comrade in arms and how far he has fallen? Perhaps they should give her all the details and specifics-

A long dagger pierces through the back and out of Caster's throat. A startled, choked gasp gargled in her throat as blood filled. Another dagger was thrown, it pierces through the back of their skull. The Caster stumbled forward, tripping over the ledge, and falling onto a dumpster in an alleyway.

The Assassin in service of King Bradley drops down, plucking his dirks to retrieve them from Caster of Red's body. "Hmph. Foolish of a Servant, to not be on guard and aware of your own surroundings."

Even though Assassin of Blue has hidden his presence, no Servant should be so careless in a war like this, where plenty of Assassins are to be expected. This has been almost too easy of a picking...

"-?!" A rush of cold comes for his side, Assassin of Blue dodges. Running up the wall and leaping to the next, he kicked off and rolled out onto the streets, striking away the frozen attacks with his dirks.

"You've proven that well enough," walking passed Caster of Red's vanishing dead body, the real Servant revealed themselves.

Assassin of Blue evaluated the Servant, whom he has already deduced the class. An Illusionist with a most impressively honed craft. The dumpster where the fake Caster of Red fell upon was still dented. For the illusion of the body to fool a real object like that, this Caster will prove themselves to be cunning.

He concluded, "I see...then for your tricks, you must be responsible for this storm."

If so, then should Assassin of Blue successfully kill this Caster, this storm will evaporate. Seeing Caster of Red's widening smile, his thought process was already known.

He moved without waiting for Caster to respond, dirks were thrown for the head and heart of the Servant of Red. However, the enemy Caster was nimble, cartwheeling out the way and with a wave of their hand, summoned more ice magic attacks - whether these attacks were real or fake, Assassin of Blue cannot take the chance to embrace them. Re-collecting his thrown daggers, he works quickly to kill Caster at once.

They circled each other on the street, one chasing the other. Assassin of Blue could end this now should he use his Noble Phantasm, but there is the issue that this Caster might also be an illusion, and there's no guarantee if it would even work if the enemy Servant has high Magic Resistance that would at best injure them, but not kill instantly. Precaution must be taken into consideration if he wishes to unleash his Noble Phantasm, if he fails and tries again, it would not be as effective, and the Caster of Red would know his trick by then, and may display a way to counter it.

He must place his cards right, while it is true that this storm must cease at soon as possible, an Assassin like him knows when to wisely take his time. Patiently waiting for the right moment, and then strike for the perfect kill.

As they fought, the Caster of Red felt a faint numb within their skull, a message reached them. The corner of their lips quirked before they mentally contacts the other Servants of Red, to tell them the news. Ruler has finally arrived.

* * *

"Dammit! Stop hiding and fight me head on!" The steel blade of Achilles' spear constantly cuts and pierces the air like fired bullets, but not a single hit touched the unseen Lancer of Red. In contrast, the Lancer of Red was landing attack after attack. A strike to the head, a punch to his back, and an attempted slice through the knee. All left Achilles no damage, yet the invisible enemy resumes.

 _He's looking for a weak point,_ Achilles knew. This could actually be a problem, if Lancer of Red discovers that he need only to strike at the heel and does it, Achilles will lose his Invincibility, and he'll be wounded by any Servant no matter if they are without a divinity attribute. Although this would bring more excitement to battle without being invulnerable, Lancer may still fight while remaining unseen, which would _not_ be as fun.

Achilles separated himself from where he believed his hidden opponent is, and saw the ground ahead of him broke, indicating Lancer of Red had sprinted. Achilles braced himself at the assumption that Lancer's attack would come directly, but saw a transparent trail of fierce red energy dashing from left to right, crossing the roof he would have missed if he blinked, and there was a kick to his hip. Achilles flew over to another roof, snow cleared from his descent as his body slid across. No worse for wear, but the Greek Hero was getting increasingly annoyed.

It didn't make sense how a Servant - let alone a _Lancer_ could use Presence Concealment and fight without revealing himself, which means it stands to reason that it wasn't Presence Concealment, but another use of a Personal Skill. Until Achilles figures out how to uncover Lancer of Red, this fight will last until the weakness in his heel is found, and by then, even for all of his other great abilities, none of them could help him see his opponent.

 _Frustrated, Achilles?_

He recalled a question asked by someone he knew long ago. The image appeared in his head; a man with the lower half of his figure the body of a horse. Eyes coated in wisdom and kindness as he spoke to a little boy, who was struggling with a challenge his teacher has assigned him to best at.

 _Keeping and enhancing your anger won't force progress to show. Instead, if you find your current approach is lacking any success, consider other ways to handle your situation._

Trying his luck to fight Lancer of Red blind wasn't bringing any results, perhaps Achilles should take the words of his teacher into consideration, and find something else he could do to work around Lancer of Red's invisibility...

A snowflake melted on the brim of Achilles' nose, and an idea bestowed upon him.

Li Shuwen raised a brow when the Rider of Blue sprung up and leapt over the ledge, his feet climbed the wall of a higher building in rapid pace before Rider took to the roof of the next building, away from Li. Was this a retreat? Or perhaps the Rider of Blue has something of a plan. Either way, Li Shuwen isn't one to willingly leave a fight unfinished. With his Sphere Boundary remaining active, he gives chase.

Achilles couldn't hear the Lancer of Red's footsteps - the sounds were hidden just as well as the enemy Servant himself, but felt it in his gut that his opponent was following. Even compared to a Lancer - a class recognized for their agility, Achilles could easily outrun any Servant, even this Lancer if he wanted to escape, but Achilles made sure not to run too fast. He wanted Lancer to catch up, at a place he's looking for, and found the perfect one in sight.

Five roofs Achilles jumped until he dropped to the street. One more run and he stopped. Large piles of snow all around him, a foot tall. Untouched.

"...You're right on my tail, aren't you Lancer?" Achilles spoke, holding up his spear. "Where are you going to hit next?"

Lancer of Red approaches quietly, noting the location Rider of Blue has taken them to, and smirked. There were more snow here than at the roof they previously were combatting on, melted as they fought. There was also a sense of restriction with these ice-encased buildings surrounding them, creating a smaller, more enclosed area that won't allow an easy escape unless he makes himself obvious.

 _Does he hope the snow here will reveal my footprints?_ It is true that while Li is invisible, it's nothing like being in Spirit Form, he may still affect and be affected by the physical plains. Although he could hide the sounds of his feet crushing the snow, it does not prevent the snow from being pushed by his physical form that was still there.

However, so long as the Rider does not see his footprints accompanied by the sound that would have him look, and for Li Shuwen to remain silent, it will be no different from their exchange back at the roof. He may also easily hide the prints he left behind by merely smoothing the snow with his feet. Whatever plan Rider has in mind, it will be ineffective.

One step closer, Shuwen's spear is raised. His next target; the calves. Surely, somewhere on Rider's body there is a spot that was not protected by this invincibility, and while Shuwen did consider that perhaps there were other means he must do to pierce through the barrier skin - that he may need certain special weapons or attack under special circumstances, he will first confirm if all of the body could truly not receive any wound, and enthusiastically sought to inflict one himself.

Shuwen positions himself, ready to pierce with his weapon - expecting either ineffectiveness or otherwise. Right then and there, Achilles moved.

The sharp edge of Achilles' steel blade cuts the snow on the ground in front of him, and in one swing, he shoveled a pile into the air. Li Shuwen sharply stepped aside, narrowly avoiding the unexpected throw of snow, then Achilles did it again, this time shoveling and throwing the snow in wider range.

A cold slap to Li Shuwen's arm, the snow stuck to his sleeve.

"There you are!"

The blade of Achilles shot for Li's stomach, the Lancer of Red clashed and swatted the weapon away with his own. The snow remained on his invisible arm even as Shuwen attempts to move aside, thus Achilles knew where he was, and the Rider of Blue swung his spear for a slice.

Blood stained the tip of his blade, red tainted the snow on Shuwen's arm. Achilles' spear pierces further into the muscle, and Li retaliated with a kick, pushing his opponent and his spear away. The Rider wore a wide smile of proud accomplishment.

"...Hmph. Finding my form by spreading the snow all around you," Shuwen grinned, blood drops contaminated the snow beside his feet. "How simple, yet effective. A chance to "see" me for a moment."

A moment may be all his opponent needed to end his life. A low chuckle builds in his throat as his wound heals by his Master who was very afar, and then a full-on laughter, "Good! Very good! I look forward to defeating you all the more, Rider of Blue!"

"I'll applaud to you for trying, Lancer of Red," Achilles responded, still smiling. "For you, I think I'll fight just a little bit more seriously, now that I know you can't hide from me for long."

Another toss of snow. Shuwen jumped back, avoiding being covered in snow, but the force of wind from his quick retreat was noticeable as the falling snow flailed around him. Achilles saw this and dashes forward, their spears crossed. A wild exchange of blades, sparks flew. It was invincibility against invisibility. Constant hits that dealt no effect to Achilles, and a couple of missed assaults but acknowledgment of Li Shuwen's position.

"Just you wait Lancer!" Shouted Achilles. "You hiding won't matter so long as I can tell where you'll be attacking next! Might as well show me your face, and better not hold back for a second!"

His suggestion was a loud one, so loud was his battle-eagerness that nearly every Servant of Red and Blue could hear him. But it wasn't anything within good reasoning to turn their heads, not so while they are busy with a foe of their own. A typical taunt that was like any else, and nothing to take their attention totally.

Except for one Servant a few blocks away.

* * *

"That voice..."

Arturia Alter halts, an abrupt change in the fight. The Berserker of Red had suddenly froze, a faint gasp left her, along with two words. The Dark Saber of Blue observed cautiously.

"I _know_ that voice..."

Berserker heaved, the chains in her hands complained from the increasing tight crush of her grip as her knuckles turn white, her nails digging so deep into her palm that blood seeps out between her fingers and chains.

" _He's_ here... _He's_ here!"

Berserker of Red hauled her chains and spun the flails from each her side. A mad scream released from her lungs as she threw her spheres of spikes with enhanced strength derived from her sudden rage. Arturia Alter braces herself, blocking the spike ball with her sword, and was pushed by ten feet. The ball was retracted and without pause, the Berserker of Red went to another direction, dragging along her flails that battered the road as she ran opposite of Arturia Alter.

The Dark Saber, though did not know why Berserker is leaving, chases after her, never would the black knight allow her enemy to escape. She follows for three blocks, and hears the commotion between Servants. A startled and confused "huh?!" followed by the crushing cement from a heavy pair of weapons.

Arturia Alter found the two Servants. She recognized the green hair Rider of Blue, whoever he had been fighting appears to be absent, and there was Berserker of Red, focused purely on Rider. The dark knight had missed Berserker ram Achilles into a building, his form denting the thick ice barrier. He recovers, removing himself from the wall and...wiped away the blood from his mouth.

Achilles, the boisterous and durable hero, examined the blood - _his_ blood in his fingers at a loss for words, before his eyes met the Berserker of Red. There was an instant shock, as if he spotted a ghost.

Arturia Alter understood that Achilles would celebrate if he meets a Servant who has the capability to wound him. She distinctly remembered him doing so two weeks ago, rambling about a Lancer with red eyes and blue hair able to cut him. And yet, here he is now, not shaking with excitement, and not a smile bloomed. He was still, speechless, mouth agape. But there was also recognition Arturia Alter noticed as she looks back at Berserker of Red.

"Do you remember me?" Berserker's question relayed such a deep chill, like frostbite that will never heal. Her glare so dark it could penetrate the Rider's invincibility without fail.

The question was unanswered, but Achilles knew. Even though she was younger, he'd never forget her eyes.

"...What are you doing here?"

Of all the things he could have said, he chose this question. Truly, against the girl he knew by heart who she was despite her younger appearance, he is doomed to speak only damning words in her presence.

"You think that I am unworthy to enter the Holy Grail War?" Berserker's tone cuts the air, the animosity intensifies. "You think that I am so weak, I could never compete?"

"N-no...that's not...I didn't-"

She tossed her flail onto her hand, though the spike stabbed her palm, the pain was below dull as her vehemence towards Rider remains, killing intent hot as molten lava. "Even in this form I've taken, do you still see me as nothing but _that_?! _ACHILLES_!"

* * *

The bow-wielding Rider of Red gasped when she heard the enraged scream of her sister. "Penthesilea! Could it be? Have you found-?!"

 _"Be ready. Ruler is heading your way."_

She clicked her tongue when she heard Caster of Red. Hippolyta had already been told of the Ruler Servant's presence within this storm, and is in position to initiate a sort of "greeting" on behalf of the Red Faction, but cries of fury from her sister tells her that either Penthesilea has met the man who killed her, or her madness deceived her into believing what may be another Greek Hero to be Achilles. Either way, Penthesilea will surely rampage, and not even these sturdy ice walls can protect the buildings and the people from the full-throttle of a maddened Amazon's power.

She wishes to be there for Penthesilea, to ensure her sister would not wreak so much havoc that the trapped people nearby would be in danger, but she'll have to first deal with Ruler. She did not like this, does not willfully agree with it, but if it will have Hippolyta meet with her sister afterwards, she will grant Ruler an honorable death.

* * *

In a desperate hurry, the Holy Maiden hears the Servants battling, she finally made it. The sky was a mess; golems and skeleton warriors combating like rivaled flocks of birds tangled with each other. Though there were quite a number of golems and skeletons, her thoughts were on the number of Servants within the area, sensing _sixteen_ of them. It aghast her.

She sees Riders on their flying mounts race over the roofs, and a limitless exchange of arrows shots between Archers, their missed attacks landed on some establishments. Though the buildings were protected by the ice barrier, the idea that many of these places houses civilians horrified Jeanne.

"This is not an appropriate place to fight!" Even with all these residents protected by this ice, they were still present. Enough power could break through, such as a Noble Phantasm of great offensive measures, and potentially kill someone.

 **! - PROJECTILE INCOMING!**

Danger rattled her senses. Jeanne leapt to the side, avoiding an arrow that exploded on impact. Multiple more attacks shot for her. Jeanne swung her flag, most arrows deflected as she searches the sight of her attacker, and found her. On top of a tower was a girl that appeared to be around Jeanne's age, holding her bow.

Even from a distance, once Jeanne made eye-contact with her attacker, she read the True Name of the Servant immediately, and her ability to read the girl's class also informs her that this bow-wielding warrior is really a Rider.

 _So I'm still targeted..._ Jeanne thinks to herself, striking away another arrow. "Rider! Let me through! I must stop this battle and this storm, or else the people here will be harmed and the rest of the city destroyed!"

Though Jeanne can simply command the Rider Servant, she mustn't waste her privileges so thoughtlessly, or she may not have enough seals when she truly needs them against this particularly powerful hero. Instead, once she knows the Rider's True Name, she tries to reach the Servant's better judgment. Gathering what is known from the Throne of Heroes, it is understood that Hippolyta is not a heartless warrior queen who is inconsiderate to the weak and innocent.

"I agree with you whole-heartedly, Ruler of the Grail War," Hippolyta said. "But I'm under the command of my Master, it is not something I can easily object. Should you wish to proceed, your only other option is to fight me or use your Command Seals on me. But be warned, my Master will not hesitate to cancel out your orders."

Surely, no Master would think themselves careless to waste a Seal or two just to intersect Ruler's command? That would leave them at a heavy disadvantage for the rest of the war, but Hippolyta is serious. It could be that her Master has allies who will have enough Seals for their Servants, and that one Master carrying one remaining Seal would not be considered a hindrance depending on the number of Masters there are in their group.

"There is another urgent matter happening here," Hippolyta stated as she readies her next arrow, "We both have our priorities to attend, mine involves my sister. In her current state, the people's safety will not concern her if she were to confront the man who killed her in life. Therefore, I must end you now Ruler, so that I may meet with my sister at once."

Because if she leaves her sister unattended, Penthesilea will bring forth the wrath that this world will never have the hope to withstand from.

* * *

Achilles was sure that Chiron would scold him. Had he really not considered, in a war like this, he would meet with people he's known in life? And of all people he could come across again - even if they were friends that he would certainly hesitate to fight outright, _she_ was participating this war.

He'd never forget his first battle with her, gorging her heart with his spear, and watching her die in anguish, cursing him out. It was a traumatic memory that stuck with him. It was because of her that he would rather not kill a female Servant, that he would not wish to pierce them with his spear like he did with that woman. Her death by his hands haunted him, just as it did when he regrettably desecrated Hector's corpse out of enraged grief.

Now here was his trauma, in the form of a teen, her round eyes crazed and hungry for his death. She demanded his demise, and does so by flinging her flails at him. Even though she must have known about Achilles' weak-point, it was unnecessary for her to hit it. Her Divine Blood allows her to harm Achilles through his invincibility, she has the potential to kill him.

It was a rematch she wanted, to avenge herself for the humiliation he bestowed upon her dying breath, she wanted an answer to this challenge, to fight her one on one. His thoughts of the invisible Lancer completely left him as he eyes Penthesilea in lingering shock, and then finally, he reacted.

After one strike against her flail, he turned his heels away from the Berserker, and bolted.

 _No. No. No. No._ His mind was filled with this. _No way. Not her. I'd rather fight teacher - hell, I'll fight Hector! But there's no way I'm fighting her!_

If it comes to fighting his teacher Chiron, he'll do so sadly, yet mixed with joy to show how far he's come beyond Chiron's lessons. If it comes to fighting Hector, he'll do so with the haunt of his previous treatment against the Trojan warrior constant, yet his irritation of the man would be enough for him to fight. But if it comes to Penthesilea...he can't. He simply. Just. Can't.

And he made this all the more worse. Penthesilea paused, astonished at Achilles' abandonment, and her body shook as her intense rage grew. _How dare he-! HOW DARE HE LEAVE?!_

Was she just something not worth fighting? Was she that pathetic and weak in his eyes? Damn him. Damn him _damnhimdamnhimdamnhim-!_

A horrifying scream that shuttered the ice encased buildings, the residents indoors were convinced that a banshee was just outside their building. Arturia Alter brought up her sword and sprung for the Berserker.

An unseen collision stopped her weapon, metallic noise rung the air. Arturia Alter was pushed back and Penthesilea charged after the fleeing Achilles. The Dark Saber waited, contemplating coolly at what could have hit her, and then hears the rushing wind of someone's weapon going for her neck. She swung her sword up and heard a deflection between blades, a minor scratch to her cheek that healed right away.

"Ah...so Achilles was busy with an invisible opponent?" Arturia Alter said. "Then you have been here all along."

Another rush of the wind, this time from behind. The black knight spun around and struck the concealed weapon, wielded by the hidden Servant. In her original form, she too would have her sword be concealed in invisibility, and her Instincts were so keen that she can be warned of a fatal attack incoming, almost like a prediction. However, as Arturia Alter, she must rely solely on her attention to her surroundings, and make a personal bet whether the attack would be fatal or not, such was the price of having greater strengths.

She remained in focus, able to strike the invisible weapon away multiple times, but her reaction was slow still, and received wounds that lasted only for a second. "Hmph. Only an assassin and a coward would fight while hiding, but regardless of your ability to conceal yourself, it will not stop me from finding you."

"You are not wrong that this approach is very much Assassin-like, but is it not just another way of fighting?" Li Shuwen countered. "The Rider I was up against almost had me actually, it was getting interesting. A shame Berserker interrupted us and he left abruptly."

Arturia Alter struck away another attack that was aimed for her heart, she released a great dark energy from her sword with one swing, but while she carved a foot wide line across the street and destroyed a parked vehicle, she did not hit Lancer of Red.

"But you're certainly strong," a hint of intrigue sketches his tone at the Dark Saber's display of power. "While I am very interested to go against the great hero Achilles, it seems Berserker is intent to end him herself. As traitorous as this sounds, I do hope that Rider will survive, I was looking forward to defeating him. But for now, I shall enjoy my time with you."

Black energy swarms Arturia Alter's sword. No matter how well hidden the Servant of Red is, she is not concerned. "I welcome it. Come close, and I will have your head."

* * *

"Come on! Come on!" Mordred impatiently insists, cutting down a golem as she ran. "I thought this was supposed to be a challenge! Keep up or I will leave you behind!"

She yelled for Alexander whom she was utterly astounded to see he was not matching her pace despite being on his horse. Alexander chopped off a golem's head with a single slice of his sword and met the Saber alongside.

"Hmmm..." He hummed, looking over the golem's corpses. "I can't help but feel something is off."

Mordred raised one golden eyebrow, "Huh? What are you-"

Familiar voices echoed in their heads, a telepathic message sent by the two leading Casters of their main base; Archimedes and Medea: _"The Ruler Servant has appeared and is under attack. All Servants unpreoccupied with a Red Faction member, depart for Ruler and defend her."_

They received the Ruler Servant's destination, specially crafted directions due to their current placement. "How about an actual race then?" Alexander proposes, already ushering his horse to move forward in a sprint.

Mordred growled in irritation. She didn't want to amuse the young Rider of Blue, but she also couldn't help not to turn down a proposition of who will best the other. She ran for him, just about to open her mouth and yell angrily at Alexander, but then the both of them sensed a presence ahead and stopped together.

They recognized the skeleton warriors that were of Medea's creation, an enemy Servant was slicing each familiar apart with a spear in each of his hand. He had defeated the last Dragon Tooth Warriors when he noticed the two Servants of Blue, a smile on his handsome face.

"Do you plan to pass through? I'm afraid this is as far as the both of you will go," Diarmuid had been informed about Hippolyta and Jeanne, and it is up to him - among the others of his group, to stop any Servants of the Blue Faction from getting to and assisting the Ruler Servant.

Mordred studied the Lancer of Red, a laugh escapes her and she raised her sword, "Get going, Rider. He's mine."

"Are you sure?" Alexander tilted his head to look at the Saber.

"I've heard that my _father_ confronted a man with two spears at a city in the east. What better opportunity than to kill the opponent _he_ failed to?" Mordred steps forth, "One of us has to reach Ruler, I'll leave that to you."

Amusement danced in Alexander's eyes before he agreed, "Then I guess I'll see you later."

It was a foolish statement to Mordred. Of course he will, she doesn't plan to lose her life from this pretty man.

She dashed forth. Diarmuid blocked Mordred's Clarent with his wrapped Gae Dearg, and quickly caught sight of Alexander trying to ride by him. Diarmuid pushed Mordred back with the pole of his spear and went to pierce with his longer weapon for Alexander's horse, but Mordred charged to block him, and though he reacted with the use of his prana-piercing spear that goes through her armor and to her ribs, she had him nearly pinned while Alexander continues onward.

"Krch! A spear that can ghost through armor?!" Mordred cursed, she backed away and struck the spear aside, moving to block Diarmuid from going after Alexander. Blood pours from underneath her chest armor, pain clutched tightly to her ribs. "Or pierce through anything prana-based? You damn cunning man..."

Red sparks swarms her wound, repairing the damage and closing the infliction. It was an estranged display, normally when a Servant heals, their wounds would be surrounded in golden light due to their heroic nature as spirits. Anything else would mean that either the hero is corrupted, their nature is that of utter anguish upon their demise, or that they are a rare being with a unique alignment.

The truth of the matter is that it was none of these, but the cause of a _candy_ Mordred was given by Envy. A little red thing that ensures she will be powered always without having to drain her Master's energy, and heal her whenever it is needed. She has no idea what it was exactly, but it surprised her once she swallowed it and felt the great intake of power. A large bucket of prana is what she believed it to be, and yet, she hasn't figured out what sort of prana did this candy formed from.

 _Seems to work well enough_ , Mordred thought of the candy before facing Diarmuid.

"You're as fierce as a bull," Diarmuid said. The Rider of Blue had already left, he will have to hope for forgiveness from his Master, and make up for it by defeating the Saber in front of him. "Somehow, you remind me of another Saber, a knight in black armor. She too was a powerful brute."

"If you think to compare me with that Saber," Mordred said as her sword is swarmed with red energy. "Then you'll find far more reasons to worry about _me_."

* * *

The roof shook at every harsh contact of their attacks. A single stream of a rainbow slithered in the air before a flash like lightning struck between the tip and his golden blade. They've been at this without pause; the Lancer of Blue versus the Saber of Red. Only silence between the Servants as their weapons sung for them, a choir of weapons combating.

The cold breeze prodded the Lancer of Blue, but the illusion weather condition was hardly anything to him, for he is the son of the sun god, the great hero of India; Karna. Pelted only by his opponent's assault that moved unlike any sword, confirming the weapon to be as alien as this Saber. Rather than like a regular weapon, every swing of her multi-colored sword moved like a whip, it was so unprecedented that Karna was surprised for a split second.

But even for the unpredictable method of her swordplay, Karna stood his ground. The armor that is part of his body protected him from the most severe damage the Saber of Red has summoned, from releasing a barrier of offensive energy when she pointed her sword to the sky, or when the sword did not extend and Saber managed to jab the blade into his stomach.

Karna endured, and he returned her attacks with his own. But even for all that he's able to inflict, from tearing through Saber of Red's shoulder with one thrust of his spear and another through her side, she did not falter, resuming with no pain evident in her emotionless face as her wounds healed, no doubt by her Master.

There was no fierce determination in her gaze like how a warrior would have, for the glory of fighting a worthy opponent, or a hint of immense effort for her own survival. She unveiled no hatred, neither great fury of one enjoying the unforgiving battle. She simply moved to kill, no motivation or personal will, only doing what she is called to do.

His skill; the **Discernment of the Poor** , the ability to see through any lies or deceits and read the true character of a person. With it, Karna was able to dictate that this Saber was something to be perfectly described as a living weapon. A machine, as he had called her before. His combat skills would have a mere mortal be defeated and dead in seconds, to match and may even better the greatest warriors in history of his world; a top-tier Servant with a mana consumption the utmost ridiculous demand, this was the only downside that makes Karna's existence as a Servant impractical because of how powerful he is.

But this woman was on another level entirely; far greater than the average Heroic Spirit, it was possible that this Saber had not been something human in life. She was not simply a swordswoman or a warrior, she was the calm that comes and hurtles a hurricane; the embodiment of destruction. A lonely existence that held no question to her purpose.

Saber of Red's eyes widened slightly, the first real reaction Karna has seen of her. She suddenly distance herself from the Lancer of Blue and raised her sword. Karna determined that a powerful attack was coming, and braced for it. Saber then pointed her alien weapon at Karna, and powerful energy circulates the tip as the tri-colored piece spun.

She unleashed her power, three beams of light were fired. Karna moved quickly, he dodged two of the attacks, and for the third, flames were released from one wave of his spear to combat against the third beam. An explosion between them. He hears the crack of the ice and crushing of the roof beneath his feet. The remnants of their attacks colliding clouded his vision of Saber, so he went aside and out of the smoke. The Saber of Red was retreating, he had no idea why until he received word from his Master.

The Ruler Servant is here, and is under fire by the Red Faction. Orders have been issued by the Blue Faction to hurry and defend Ruler. When he hears the directions of the mediator's whereabouts, he realized Ruler's position was where the Saber was running off to.

The Saber of Red must have been informed by her Master about Ruler as well, and went to join the assault. Abiding his Master's orders, he follows after her quick. Beside his duty to heed the command of his summoner, he could not let Saber get away. Just looking into her eyes and Karna understood at once: this is a dangerous being. Letting her leave is not something he should allow if anyone were to have a chance in this grail war.

* * *

The message of Ruler's presence was sent to every Red and Blue Servants, and for each group in the area ordered to kill or protect her at any cost. But until the moment that a few members of either faction are to come in her aid or Hippolyta's, Jeanne held herself against the Amazon Rider in the meantime. Running for cover constantly to avoid the rain of arrows, and having to rush out once more when Hippolyta moves to find and snipe the Ruler Servant.

She was given little choice but to fight Hippolyta, yet her great concerns lies on the battlefield this part of the city has been pulled into. She has to find the one who caused this storm, an uneasy task while she remains a target, and if the rest of the Red Faction Servants have also been commanded to kill her, this would become something more difficult to adjust. She honestly couldn't imagine fighting several Servants at once, and even if there would be no other way, the issue remains that whatever fight between Servants cannot happen here, not with the people inside these buildings no matter how strong the ice walls as their shields are.

 _"What are you going to do?"_

She hears Rose's concerns, and feels the deep worry she has for Jeanne, as well the helplessness of having to watch the struggle through the Ruler Servant's eyes. An arrow stabbed into the armor behind her shoulder before Jeanne could answer, a pained grunt left the Holy Maiden. She pulls out the arrow as she considers her option, a possible solution to this was to use her Command Seals, and force Hippolyta to end her own life. It was not the most favorable option even if it was to defend herself, it was even worse to acknowledge that Hippolyta's actions are not the Amazon's own will.

What's more, Hippolyta's Master could use up their own Seals to cancel Ruler's out, if Ruler were to use both of hers and the Master of Rider uses up his, that would leave Hippolyta exhausted, and it will be the moment Jeanne needed to escape and search for the culprit of this storm.

Still, her heart was troubled. This plan is only a desperate attempt with a chance of success so flimsy. She knew she must do whatever she can to survive, and pray to God that someway, somehow...

A dozen of Dragon Tooth Warriors flew overhead, each one of them takes a hit from Hippolyta's arrows, defending Ruler. Familiars Jeanne recognized them to be. Were they support from the Blue Faction? There wasn't any time to consider what they may or may not be, this was her chance. Jeanne rushes down the road as more Dragon Tooth Warriors distracts Hippolyta.

Her senses as Ruler guides her. She was getting closer to the person responsible for this storm. She turns left on the street, and gasped. Jeanne jumped aside, avoiding a colorful whip that broke the ground she once stood. It returned to its inflictor and retracted into a shape of a sword, emotionless eyes peering into Jeanne's. This was not the Servant she was looking for, it was another Servant trying to kill her.

The Saber of Red whipped with her sword again, the weapon extended and reached Jeanne like a snake going for a bite. The Holy Maiden struck the weapon away with her flag pole, and again when the rainbow snake returned.

"A weapon that looks like a rainbow..." It was then that Jeanne recalled something. Something that was described by the Overseer the day she first met him...

* * *

 _Father Kotonelm had given Jeanne the map of the marked places that had been decimated by a Servant of the Red Faction, and begun detailing information that were gathered from these places and what had happened._

 _"The destruction of these villages and towns were far too abnormal for a mere terrorist magus or alchemist to perform," he said. "Besides the False Ice Trail Incident, these other attacks were done differently, yet it is certain that a Servant is responsible."_

 _He pointed at a location, "I_ _n this town, a strange epidemic had choked the villagers half of their lifespans. The cause of their infliction was a green smog that suddenly flowed into their homes. Casualties have reached over forty. The survivors were able to pull through, but they will not live for long."_

 _He explained without a hint of grief, "Those who had breathed in the poisonous fog and lived lost nearly all functions of their body and their lungs heavily damaged. Through collecting samples of the smog's essence, it was a creation far beyond a magus or alchemist's capability, and so it was concluded to be the work of a Servant."_

 _The priest pointed the next location, "Then there was this attack at another village, it was determined to be the terrorist work of Isaac the Freezing Alchemist and his group. However, witnesses accounts that on the night twenty people were murdered, one man who was homeless stated seeing a woman of a heart shaped spear and sad eyes wandering alone at night. There had been readings of immense prana release within that area, confirmed by a Magus who lives there."_

 _"And the last Servant attack?"_

 _Kotonelm points to the last village, "This was an attack that almost left no one alive. The village was utterly destroyed. It was passed off as another terrorist act done by the Freezing Alchemist or the most ruthless case of banditry. The sole survivor, however, a young boy claimed that while he went to pick flowers for his mother, his village blew up behind him, and that there was_ _a woman leaving the fire that burned the homes, we believe it was a Servant."_

 _Jeanne's heart grieves for the child, such a horrible thing to be forever remembered by someone so young. Truly awful._

 _Kotonelm continues, "His only description of the woman was that she wore a long veil over her silver hair, and wielded a sword that looked like a rainbow."_

* * *

A veil over her silver hair, a rainbow sword. Jeanne clutched tightly the pole in her hands. "...Attila the Hun, answer me this."

The woman whose name is revealed remained silent.

"Were you the one responsible for burning down a village? Has it been you and other Servants of your group's doing that led to the deaths of innocent townsfolk?" Because if she is, Jeanne promises, as Ruler of the Fifth Holy Grail War, she will put an end to this Saber and her group's evil deeds. There is no negotiation, this is her passing judgment.

Attila swung her sword, the extension whipped for Jeanne's head. The Holy Maiden deflected the weapon, and readies herself to truly fight the Saber when another Servant suddenly came from above in intervention. The Saber of Red takes quick notice of the presence before it had arrived, and just in time had blocked an attack that fired for her heart. Karna dashed away from his opponent, stopping in front of Jeanne and faces Attila.

"You are the Ruler Servant, correct?" Karna addressed the Holy Maiden behind him. "My Master seeks to ensure you remain alive. Though whether we fight together or you remain as a watchful mediator, that is your call to make, yes?"

Jeanne nodded, "Indeed. Normally, I would stand aside and never dare to intrude a battle between warriors, but this Saber, and possibly other members of her group is suspected of many serious offenses, excluding this storm." For her terrorism, Jeanne will not allow Saber of Red to leave unpunished, and no sooner after she vanquish Saber that she will search for her Master.

"I see. Then perhaps a temporary alliance between you and my Master's group is necessary? I understand your position as Ruler, yet if the Red Faction intends to kill you, would that not impose a hindrance to your duty? There is also little time before this storm would have half of this city."

He has a point. While Jeanne cannot shake off the idea that this was the opportunity the Blue Faction has been looking for, she cannot deny that they were running out of time, and she highly doubted the Lancer before her to be a deceitful one, reading his True Name and now aware of who he is, what the warrior spoke was only the truth. Stopping this storm while eight enemy Servants are out for her, Jeanne may not be able to face this alone after all. Perhaps, in a scenario as chaotic as this, she should accept-

Danger rattled her and Karna's instincts, they looked to Attila, and found her sword pointing towards the sky. The ground beneath her rumbled. Prana began to build and surround the multi-color alien weapon, the wind spirals around the Saber.

Jeanne realized what was happening, much to her horror, "No...Not here. You can't!"

Karna's shoulders tensed, "You intend to unleash _that_...?"

The signs were all there. The Saber of Red, Attila the Hun... She's going to use her **Noble Phantasm**!

* * *

It was at the Fifth Laboratory that a few people remained unaware the catastrophe about to be bestowed by the indifferent Saber of Red, yet it was without argue that trouble still stirs within their vicinity. The manipulative serial killer that is Barry the Chopper; with his adept mind games grasping Alphonse, he was able to shake the young Alchemist's question of existence greatly.

After the question if Alphonse was truly Edward's brother and not some puppet, a fabricated soul or rather, the wrong soul Edward may have pulled out from the Gates of Truth, Alphonse was at a crisis. He shouldn't believe the words of an evil man, but what if he was right? His brother did wanted to confess something, as if it were a dark secret, could it be this? Was Alphonse not a real soul? Was he some other soul that had no relation to Edward from the beginning?

No, NO! That can't be! He had his memories! His recollection of his mother! Winry and Pinako! No way could all of that be made up!

But Barry was apathetically crafty. He simply countered that Alphonse's memories were fake, and that those who claimed to know him were simply playing along. Alphonse desperately attempts to deflect his lie, that if it was true, then Barry and Ryan would be no different from Alphonse, how would they know if they were real people once?

Not a beat missed when Barry gave his answer, and upon throwing his cleaver from behind, killing the sole guard who came from the front once the noisy disturbance reached him, Barry answered with content that he knew his legitimate existence by his love for killing. As for Ryan, he was no different, he knew his existence to be true by his endless curiosity of a person's _beauty_ , and that he would seek it even if he had to kill. This was how these two lunatic men knew they were who they were, but the question still lies; who was Alphonse Elric? A soul in a body of armor. _Did he even exist?_

Meanwhile, inside the lab, Edward had been victorious. He had received wounds and was completely exhausted, but he survived. During the fight, he confirmed his suspicion that this man wasn't human, but a soul bounded to a set of armor like his younger brother. 48 congratulated his deduction before he told his name out of respect: Slicer. As if to grant Edward the honor, he also revealed his blood seal; confirming that if Edward were to destroy it, the State Alchemist will win this fight.

He also mentions that two companions of his were around, and possibly fighting his brother, but Edward didn't allow worry to surface, he trusted Alphonse. His younger brother was the better fighter, never losing one match between them. He'll be fine, or so he ignorantly believes.

Regardless of knowing or not, Edward had to focus on Slicer There was a moment where he believed to have won against killer by knocking his helmet head off of his body, thus it should have severed the connection between the body and the head where his seals is imprinted inside, but the armor body suddenly moved on its own. It turns out to be the brother of Slicer. The body of armor had not been holding one soul, but two!

Slicer's brother nearly killed Edward, and the Fullmetal Alchemist truly believed that he was going to die. He lost too much blood at this point, and was convinced that this might be it, but he mentally slapped himself awake - he survived a spear to the heart, he survived Scar, he can and _will_ survive this as well!

And he did. He had slammed his palm against the body of Slicer's sibling, and it burst into an explosive method of deconstruction; just like what he remembered Scar did. Now both of the Slicer Brothers lay defeated, and both of them welcomed Edward to destroy their blood seals, but Edward refused, regardless of their background and their state as souls bounded to armor, they were still living beings, and Edward will not kill anyone he deems to be a person.

Such a surprising display of compassion startled the brothers, never have they been treated in such a manner in a long time. Their respect for the Fullmetal Alchemist enhanced, and it was the eldest brother who decided to tell Edward everything he knows. He'd began to explain.

"At first, this place was used to do experiments, but a long while back, we've been seeing new people come out of he-"

A black needle extends from the shadows, and it pierces Slicer's blood seals. Edward gasped, and Slicer's sibling cried out as the light in Slicer's eyes faded, his soul left.

"My oh my, that was certainly a close call," the voice of allure slithers into the room, a woman in black clothing steps out of the dark. "We can't let too many of our secrets get out, now can we?"

"Brother! Brother!" Slicer's brother continues to cry out, until a foot crushed through his ruined armor, breaking the seal with his bare foot.

"Shut your crying you useless idiot!" It was another person, with long dark green hair and a wide, cruel smile. "We've been meaning to get rid of you both now that we got way better people to replace you, but you idiots almost killed one of our important sacrifices! You could have ruined everything!"

With a vicious look, he stomped onto the seal repeatedly. The brother of Slicer struggled incessantly with his already damaged body, and then dies.

Edward watched in disgusted horror at the sight of merciless killing, he gritted his teeth and staggered as he tries to stand, "Who the hell are you guys?" What was Slicer about to tell him? What was this new guy saying about a sacrifice?

"Oh look Lust!" Envy chuckled, "The curious brat thinks he can still fight!"

Edward lunged forward to attack. Envy sidestepped and brought up his knee, hitting Edward's chin and knocking him back. Not good. Edward is drained of all his energy from fighting the Slicer brothers, he can't handle another fight right away.

"Be careful with him Envy," Lust tells her sibling. "We don't want him to be too damaged..." She pauses and looked aside, as if listening to someone. "...We need to hurry. That storm is getting close to our location. Grab the boy and let's go."

"Like hell I'll let you take me anywhere!" Edward defiantly shouted, raising his automail blade, "Just what are you guys planning?!"

"Wouldn't you like to know?" Envy ridiculed. "Don't make this hard for any of us, you're lucky that we don't plan to kill you."

Why? What is it about Edward that matters to these psychos? He lunged forward again, his blade aimed for Envy, but the inhuman merely swatted away the automail and punched Edward's face. The boy flew to and struck a pillar.

"Better go and handle getting the other guy outside, Lust," Envy tells the woman. "Those two morons might accidently kill him too."

On the ground in pain, Edward's body stiffened. Did they mean his brother? Were they after him too? No. No way. He won't allow that. He will not allow these monsters to lay a single finger on Alphonse!

It has been a terrible time these past few weeks. He had almost been murdered three times this month, and now he's going to lose another fight. No. He won't accept it. He's been beaten down far too many times now! He would rather fight to his last breath, right to the very end before he will allow anyone to go near his brother!

"I am so sick of losing..." His fingers dragged the dirt, "I've already had to deal with so much crap up to this point." Disappointments and Defeats. He's tired of it, he's tired of being let down, and letting others down. He let down Alphonse and Nina at the discovery of the recipe for the Philosopher's Stone, the one thing he promised would help them by using. He let down everyone who believed in him and his word to bring back his and his brother's body back.

But he'll keep fighting. Someway, somehow, he'll find another way, he'll get back the one thing he stole from Alphonse, and nothing in this world is going to stop him.

At this point, were it not for the discovery of a single bolt, his automail would have malfunctioned and go limb, determining his loss. But here, he declares: "There's no way I'm letting anyone stop me now!"

A loud clap between his hands, alchemical energy swarms his palms, and he slams them to the ground, where he would construct a spear to fight these monsters with.

Instead, the unexpected happened.

The alchemical reaction was suddenly pulled towards the edge of the large _Transmutation_ Circle at the center, and dispersed for the ground.

"Huh-?!"

Statics erupts from the circle. Envy screeched when struck by one and jumped aside. Lust backed away, caught off guard by the sudden reaction. Edward fell back, not at all had he planned for _that_ to happen. "What the-?"

A rupture of energy travels within the circle, unstable matter reconstructing repeatedly, the electricity within the room flickered before the disperse of power from the circle caused their circuits to overload and break with a pop, raining down sparks. The lines of the circle glowed.

"The hell is happening?!" Envy shouted. "The circle shouldn't have activated!"

The room trembled as energy transverse at the center, power from the circle so immense, the ground cracked under its pressure.

Edward screamed, a sudden burning pain on the back of his human hand, blood seeping through his white glove. He pulled it off to see what the damage was, and was shocked, "What the hell?!"

Three symbols burned brightly on the skin, then more red started to surface. He grasped his hand tightly, the pain shooting him like he was getting electrocuted.

Envy heard Edward's pained scream and saw what was on his hand, "No way. That's impossible! You-" He thought the brat gave his Seals away! How does he still have them?! "Damn it!"

"Wait Envy!" Lust tried to warn the sibling, but Envy had already sprinted for the boy. Energy continues to fluctuate from the circle sporadically. Edward glanced up and forced himself to stand, just avoiding Envy's sprung for him.

"What the hell is going on?!" Edward demanded as the pain enhanced.

"Just shut up and give me those Seals!" Envy has nothing with him to transfer the Seals without trouble. His only option was to rip the boy's hand off, so long as the bleeding stops, the sacrifice will still live.

He was able to grab him, and forced him to the ground. His knee jabbing into the boy's spine. "Ow ow ow OW OW OW!" Edward sputtered out the pain of his arm being pulled back, and the pain that was happening everywhere else on his body. Blood from the burning Seals trails down to his shoulder. It was agony, everything in his system felt like they were set aflame. He was sure he would passed out, and for moment, it seemed like he did...

 ** _A wooden door stood before him..._**

What? Where in the world was he?

 _ **A lock below the knob, a key in his hand...**_

Was he dreaming?

 _ **The key is inserted, he twisted it until he heard a click...**_

He was aware of himself, but he felt no control. His body moved on its own, as if it knew what to do.

 _ **The doorknob in his grasp, he turned it, and enters into the light...**_

And with that, his potential is unlocked.

The waking world returns to Edward, he gasped as he struggles under Envy. The shock of leaving the vision left him with a haggard breath, but the pain in his body - excluding his bleeding hand, was gone.

"Stop moving you damn pipsqueak!" Envy's nails pierced into Edward's hand, ready to tear it off along with the seals, but it was too late.

Light bursts from the circle, the Fullmetal Alchemist and the homunculi could only look at it speechlessly, and then the whole room was swallowed by the light.

* * *

Karna rushes to slay Saber of Red, but the Saber braced his attacks. Deflecting every attack with her sword, she continues to collect the power that fuels her Noble Phantasm.

This cannot be allowed to happen. Depending on the kind of power of Saber's Noble Phantasm, if it is truly powerful, then the people with these buildings are under immediate threat, Jeanne cannot hope that these ice-barriers will be strong enough to withstand the power of Attila the Hun; the very figure who brought an end to countless civilizations.

With only one option in mind, she loudly announced: ** _"Saber-! By the power of my Command Seals-!"_**

She lost her breath, disbelief wove her expression. She searches, and searches internally. But there was no sign of it. The connection that should have been there, the Seals of Attila... There was none. She cannot find it on herself.

 _That...that shouldn't be possible!_ As Ruler, Jeanne is supposed to have two Seals for each and every Servant participating in the Holy Grail War. So why? Why doesn't she feel a connection to Attila? Why doesn't she have that Servant's seals?!

The Saber of Red's power was at its critical peak. There was no time to ponder over this baffling discovery, she has to do something to survive what would be a decimation. Karna was attempting to disrupt the sworsdwoman, but there was no stopping the Saber while her guard was up, as the son of the sun god begun to consider countering Attila's Noble Phantasm with his own, Jeanne was already prepping hers. She has to protect the people here, even if she could only save one building, she has to shield them against Attila's power.

She raised her flag, her body glowed in holy light. Her ultimate defense was ready to release, as was Attila's ultimate assault. The name of her Noble Phantasm embedded in her mind, and had just about to touch the aria...

A sudden wave of prana expulsion resonated her being, and every Servant within the storm - within the city, halted. The Servants flinched at the disturbance too abrupt to ignore, so profound it was that it could even be felt by the Servants under Central Command. Attila paused, even the impassive Servant was taken aback by this abrupt sensation that had her halt the activation of her power.

A whirring sound reached the Saber of Red's ears, but as she was in the midst of nearly unleashing her Noble Phantasm, she failed to react quickly. A large gear collided with her back, and her Noble Phantasm deactivated. Jeanne and Karna, reverting their attention to the dangerous Servant, leapt aside and watched the Saber of Red crash onto the street, carving the road from her descent.

The gear inventions of Archimedes came in great numbers, flying around the block and surrounding Attila. Jeanne uttered a sigh of relief.

 _Too close_ , she thought repeatedly, and then rears her attention to where the sudden explosion of prana have occured. She recognized what it was right away.

 _A summoning nearby?_ Indeed it was, but something about it was obviously strange, no summoning should have caused Servants like herself, Karna, and even Attila to react the way they did. Then she felt it, the new Command Seals appearing on her body, and frowned when she received them.

"Wait...this is..." She looks to the direction of where she felt the summoning has taken place. "The Servant. There's-!"

* * *

Everything settled into a quiet calm at the fifth laboratory. The ruckus that happened in there was so great, Alphonse and the two killers had heard it, their armor had rattled lightly because of it.

"What was that all about?" Ryan asked.

"Beats me," Barry shrugged. "Probably another experiment happening. Although, I wasn't told that there would be one tonight."

"B-brother?" Alphonse whispered out as he looks at the building. Even with his dilemma, he remained his common calling of Edward.

And as for the eldest Elric sibling, trapped under the non-human's grip, he and the homunculi were appalled. Speechless for a brief moment, until Envy was the first to break the silence, "How the hell did you-?!"

Lightning struck the homunculus' chest, releasing Edward into a free, numb feeling state as the inhuman crashes through the wall. Edward stumbled away, tripping over his own feet as he stared at the center of the room in bafflement, grasping his bleeding hand that still stung.

"...Well, this is certainly unexpected."

Electricity danced the fingertips of a golden gauntlet.

"Yet, helpful, considering the expansion."

The white fabric of a long-coat swayed gently.

"However, in the end, there can only be so few that remains in the Holy Grail War."

Lust steps away cautiously, communicating to Medea at once of the situation in front of her.

"Yes, but until then..."

They turn their attention to Edward.

"Servant Caster has answered your call," one man introduced himself. With long soft bluish-gray hair, his gilded bronze eyes were gentle, and he adorns a kind smile. He wore an intricate white long-coat like that of someone who worked at a laboratory, with black fingerless gloves that reached under his sleeves, black pants and long gray boots. His spoke in a calm voice, and his posture emits a friendly, welcoming air.

"Servant Archer has come at your request," the other man spoke in a tone that held pride to his greeting. With an intelligent look about him and more imposing in his stature, his dark hair with blue streaks was long and wavy, and his eyes were icy blue. He was dressed in a dark blue suit, white dress shoes, a long black cape over his shoulders, and a golden gauntlet around one hand, still active with energy.

"If you would please-"

"Answer one question-"

The battle between the Red and Blue Faction was put to a brief stop, the oddity that every Heroic Spirits in Central City has detected. Within the fifth laboratory, two Servants stood on top of the Summoning circle, surrounded by transmutation circles, and together, they asked the Fullmetal Alchemist:

"Are you our Master?"

* * *

 **With two set of Command Seals, a new Master is pulled into the war.**

 **A/N: There you have it! I loved reading all of your guesses and suggestions of who will be Edward's Servant, but I've already had my mind set when I thought about writing this story, and that was to give him not one, but Two Servants! The greatest minds out of many others in history: Nikola and Paracelsus!**

 **There are several things that are already set in stone for where this story will go, but I would love to hear your predictions of what happens next. Who knows? I might be influenced enough by you guys that I may actually involve it in the story. I hope all of you enjoyed the surprise in the end.**

 **Fun Fact about choosing Nikola Tesla and Paracelsus: I originally had an idea about Edward getting more than just one Servant. A story SO separate from this one. It would have happened in Liore, Cornello would have trapped him in a Human Transmutation circle that's actually a summoning circle, and Edward would have broken free by using his alchemy and accidently summoning FOUR Servants.**

 **It was going to be a simple cute fluffy story about the Elric brothers having four dads, but I ultimately lost interest in writing it and I didn't even post any chapters.**

 **In _that_ story, the four Servants Edward would have gotten are basically the four geniuses in history; Paracelsus, Nikola, Thomas Edison, and Charles Babbage. I decided to give Paracelsus and Nikola to Edward since Thomas and Charles are more of Alphonse's Servants - Servants which Alphonse can't technically have, I don't think, because of his lack of a body. I won't give away how, but Thomas will definitely be part of this story and there's a chance, but I'm not too sure yet, that Charles Babbage might show up as well.**

 **Despite having my mind made up about how most of this story will go, I will admit that I've been influenced by you guys to rearrange a few things in In Exchange For A Miracle. For example…EdwardXJeanne.**

 **At first, I hadn't planned for them to be…well, romantically involved. But as I developed this story in my mind, I think I'll consider it. This IS a crossover, and what would a crossover be without taking advantage of something like this? It's gonna be a kind of slow romance build up though, but ship them as much as you want!**

 **Thank you again for reading, until the next chapter!**


	11. Of Alchemy and Lightning

**Author's Note: And we are back! So sorry for the long wait, I had to update my other story and of course, I have to take priority to my personal life. It was also hard getting back into the funk of writing for fun, so while I have failed to offer you guys a Christmas present of new chapters, I'm hoping to post this on New Years, but I've already failed that, so...**

 **Previously on In Exchange For A Miracle, a surprising summoning left Edward with two Servants! How and why did he gain two Servants? You're all welcome to make guesses!**

 **I know how bloated the Servant list are, and believe me, there's going to be more, this Holy Grail War is just that crazy. But I'm hoping to work with it as best I can! And THANK YOU to everyone for the favorite, follow, reviews and giving this story over 20,000 views! That's just insane! You are all very lovely people and I hope you'll enjoy where this story is taking off!**

 **Firstly, I want to give a shout out and say HAPPY BIRTHDAY! to angelvan105! Unfortunately by the time this chapter comes out it will be very late, like, MONTHS late. But here is my gift anyway, the next chapter of In Exchange For A Miracle!**

 **I will now begin answering questions:**

 **To TheAzureKnight: AU Shirou and Saber/Arturia Pendragon will be part of the story much, much later on. If you want to know when exactly, Private Message me and I'll tell you, though I won't give too much spoilers. But for the majority of the story, we'll be focusing on Jeanne, Edward, Alphonse, and the new addition to our main cast: Servants of the Fullmetal Alchemist.**

 **To Itzhak: The Golden King will appear, he has an important role though not as big as the main antagonist of the story, but Gilgamesh will certainly be one of the many enemies Edward and Jeanne will have to face and overcome before getting to the Big Bad. How Gilgamesh will be part of this I cannot say to avoid spoilers. Also, Edward having "four" Servants was my first idea of a story that didn't even involve the Holy Grail War, and after I begun writing IEFAM(In Exchange For A Miracle), I decided to pick two for Edward; Archer and Caster.**

 **To Zane Tribal Tyne Alexandros: I'd hope to explain by the next chapter but I'll tell you now, when the summoning was happening, Edward felt immense distress inside him; that was his Magic Circuits unlocking from the activation of the summoning circle and his Command Seals reaction to it. The vision that happened while Envy had him pinned down, "unlocking a door," was a representation of his Magic Circuits awakening.**

 **From what I've read on Wikia, this happens when a Magus unlocks their Magic Circuits, causing a "mental trigger." Like for Rin Tohsaka, unlocking her circuits gave her a vision of stabbing a knife into her heart, and for Shirou, firing the hammer of a gun. Edward's Mental Trigger is reminiscent to the time when he and Alphonse went into Hohenheim's study room and learned Alchemy through his works when they were little kids.**

 **As for the question of how Edward is going to supply his Servants Prana, I've thought up a way he, as an Alchemist, can do to support his Servants (You know, without having to do the..."You know what" - oh boy, just imagine the reaction of every FMA characters about the practice of "Mana Transfusion" in the Nasuverse). With Archer's Independent Action, Archer doesn't need that much or any Mana Support from his Master, and supporting Caster isn't as bad as trying to support a Saber or even worse, a Berserker.**

 **I've matched Tesla and Paracelsus to Edward because for Tesla, he represents Edward's pride while Paracelsus represents Edward's skills in Alchemy (For Tesla it was an accidental perfect fit beside his pride and intellect, other than having the power of electricity that's similar to the sparks of Alchemy when activated, and one of Tesla's skills or powers involves the use or something similar to alchemy in the Fate world. What are the odds?! I was totally oblivious of how much in common Mordred has with Edward until you guys suggested her to be his Servant and gave your reasoning, so if Edward were to summon one Servant without a catalyst, he would have just about an equal chance to summon Nikola just as he would for Mordred.)**

 **Nikola and Paracelsus will definitely play a role not only as teachers, but parental figures for the Elric brothers. I love Hohenheim in FMA Brotherhood but I just can't help writing fluff for these guys, and I think Hohenheim will appreciate someone protecting and guiding his son** **s while he's busy trying to save Amestris.**

 **I like your idea about Jeanne's reaction to Truth. If I ever find a way for them to meet in this story, I hope that with your permission, I can use your idea and give you credit.**

 **To** **4bitwriter : I already have a Servant in mind for Mustang, and it won't be Archer Inferno. It'll be long into the story before we all get to see what hero he gets, but look forward to it!**

 **Please leave a kind and honest review!**

* * *

Chapter 11: Of Alchemy and Lightning

They waited in expectancy for an answer that would have been simple for that who understood what it was that enlightened the room with an otherworldly miracle of their arrival. Although for the two of them to be summoned upon the same circle was a surprise neither of them anticipated, they were briefed with the abnormal situation of the Heaven's Feel ritual upon coming into this reality, so while for both to be paired with one Master may not seem much in the face of unlimited contesting participants, perhaps this will prove to be necessary.

They gaze at the boy, acknowledging the cuts and bruises they could only assume to be the work of the person who had this child pinned down, Caster was prepared to move forward and respond to these injuries when the boy of a dumbfounded expression finally spoke.

"Uh...what?" That was all Edward could say, processing the question said by the two men while his mind still reels at their sudden arrival.

He flinched when Caster walked towards him, with movements so calm it eases the tension that would arise at the sight of the unfamiliar stranger, but the Fullmetal Alchemist remained wary. He watched as the man knelt before him, no ill-intent evident in those soft bronze eyes, and nearly brought his hands up when the man touched his bleeding forehead. "Please hold still," Caster requested.

"What are you-" Edward went silent when he felt a soothing sensation on his forehead, a glow beneath the man's fingertips. The bleeding stopped, and the cut he'd gained from Slicer sealed as the pain went away.

"It's alright," Caster assured kindly, "I'll have you healed in just a moment."

The man then gently pressed the side of the Fullmetal Alchemist's ribs, discovering a pained reaction from Edward, and his fingertips once more glowed. His action and examination was no less of a man who clearly has experience in a medical profession, and his work instantly proved this. Wounds and bruises from the fight against the Slicer brothers began to heal immediately under Caster's touch, and rejuvenation courses through Edward, astonishing the boy. How is this man performing such healing work without a Transmutation Circle? He didn't even have to clap to use this...alchemy?

"Medea," Lust quietly contacted her Servant, perturbed at the unprecedented event in front of her.

 _"I see them,"_ Medea responded, able to view the summoning room through her crystal ball. _"One Servant would have been problematic enough, but for that child to somehow summon two... Even so, we already have another issue. The storm is coming too close your way. I can request sending you and Envy support, but you need to leave_ _now_ _."_

There was a thought to suggest sending one of their other Servants of Blue that were on standby, but with the battle inside the storm already so dynamic as it was, anymore Heroic Spirits would just add fuel to the chaos _._ It was not recommendable if they wish to keep this entire city in relatively one piece.

Lust had to agree. As strong of a homunculus she is, born from the blood of the most powerful Alchemist of this world, she knew better than to fight against a Servant, let alone two of them. Even with her ultimate weapon, she would rather not push her luck with beings of great otherworldly abilities and use up so many of her lives unnecessarily. No, it was better to leave the boy to these men and retreat.

Knowing well that Envy will catch up once he recovers, Lust slips out of the room as discreetly as possible, and disappears into the darkness of the halls. The two Servants here, however, were actually aware of her presence and leave, but they ignored her in favor of placing their attention on Edward, as well the pressuring source of prana not too far away.

"Hmm... Multiple Servants are fighting nearby," Archer announced in a neutral tone.

Almost completing his healing of his confused Master, Caster then grasped Edward's bleeding hand as he responded, "Yes, I sense them as well. They're moving closer to our position. It would be best to leave here immediately."

Edward watches in stunned silence as the blood on his backhand clears away from Caster's ability, and gawked at what was revealed. Marked onto his skin was the tattoo he thought he was rid of, only now there were six red symbols overtaking the space beneath his knuckles. The general image of it was almost the same as before, a pair of arms reaching for a small oval in the sky, but in between the arms appeared to be warped limbs surrounding a crescent shape at the center that lay on its curved back.

Why? Why does he have _this_ again?

"It'll be alright. If we move out of here quickly, I'm sure we'll be fine," Caster pulled the boy out of his thoughts, introducing him with his warm smile once more. "I look forward working together with you, and for us to call each other friends, Master."

 _Master._ That was the title Jeanne had mentioned before, a name for competitors partaking in the absurd Holy Grail War who are responsible for leading their weapons-in-human-form into battle; those powerful, supposedly _reincarnated_ spirits he had come across and barely survived from one? The ones that fought Jeanne at East City, and what Jeanne claimed herself to be?

 _Servants._ Did these men actually introduced themselves to be as such upon their arrival? Were they really those beings of _fantastic_ feats? His shock set aside, Edward yanked his hand away and found his voice, "Who are you? Where did you guys come from?"

Caster blinked in surprised, "You don't know?" There was a brief moment of confusion before his expression turned thoughtful, a look of contemplation as if he was reading a peculiar document. "...Could it be that you did not mean to summon us?"

"An accidental summoning?" Archer surmised. "To summon two Servants at that, he must be quite talented for someone his age." Or perhaps, it was another irregularity of the Fifth Holy Grail War. Oho. This will be an interesting war indeed.

"Summoning? What are you... what is going on here?!" Edward demanded.

"Settle down, boy," Unfazed by the outburst, Archer walks to Caster's side as he calmly spoke to the Fullmetal Alchemist. "You'll be eased to know that we're not your enemies."

"He's right," Caster said. "I would be happy to tell you everything I know, but first, we should leave here. This facility won't be safe for long."

"Agreed. Let's get going then," without a word of warning, Archer grabbed the back collar of Edward's shirt.

"What the-!?" The Fullmetal Alchemist was abruptly lifted from the ground. His view of the men changes to a view of Archer's back, and the intense crackling of electricity resounds his ears.

* * *

They stood there unmoving, Alphonse and the two killers. It was not because they were at an impasse, but that their fight was further delayed when something had burst from the walls of the laboratory and tumbled across before crashing into the stone wall that gaurded the area, burying the figure under broken pieces of the wall. The three soul-bounded armors stared at the pile, almost at a loss in what to say after being caught so off guard at the unexpected unknown thing that rolled pass between them.

"...Hey, wasn't that Envy?" Ryan only caught sight of the rolling figure shortly, but he was sure it looked very much like the person who left him and Barry in charge of guarding the laboratory.

"Was it? I didn't see, it went by so fast," Barry scratched the top of his helmet with the back of his cleaver as an emphasis to his confusion. He looked back at the lab, "What the hell happened in there-?"

There was a sound of gun shot, and a bullet struck Barry's cleaver, knocking the weapon out of his grip, "Hey! Who did-?"

"Don't move! Or I'll put a bullet in you and your friend's head," a familiar female officer stood far behind the killers, her gun aimed on them.

She was recognized by Alphonse at once, "Lieutenant Ross!"

Sergeant Brosh was close behind, climbing down from a tree tall enough to assist him and Ross over the wall, "You have no idea the amount of trouble you and your brother are in, Al. What do you think went through our minds when you boys disappeared under our watch? You had us worry sick!"

"S-sorry Lieutenant," Alphonse weakly replied, already knowing the kind of conversation he and the officers will have later. More than an earful, certainly.

"This sure isn't looking good for us," Barry stated. Other than the two officers arrival, if Ryan is right that it was Envy who was knocked out from the lab - for a _monster_ to be tossed aside the way it did, then clearly something is wrong. Barry knew better than to get careless and idle if it turns out that whatever is happening is something that neither he or Ryan can handle, he'd been smart enough to evade the police as long as he was able to after all.

"Guess not," Ryan tapped the flat tip of his knife against his chin thoughtfully, "But maybe we can still kill them? Bullets won't stop us you know," So long as their blood seals are left untouched, they couldn't be harmed like they would with a human body. Honestly, this new body has provided Ryan with such conveniences, no longer does he have to worry about hunger or sleep, it's been the greatest and _coolest_ thing to have ever happen for him!

Envy emerged from the rubble, red sparks sizzles over his burning wounds to regenerate, combating the blue electrical effects of the attack he'd been struck by, "Dammit. How the hell did that brat get two...?"

Envy knew the Summoning Circle in that room was liable to bring forth more than one Servant as it was designed to, but this would only be possible if he and his siblings were there with enough resources in place, and with the Philosopher's Stones, they could compensate the required mana support for their Servants by themselves. As far as he knew, nothing was heard about a human, Magus or Alchemist, able to summon more than one Servant; so how is it the boy - an Alchemist who willingly gave away his seals, did what shouldn't be possible?

His presence was then acknowledged. Maria looked at Envy in startle, "What the...who are you-?"

An explosion of concrete and lightning ignites through the newly-made exit of the laboratory. Those closest to it ran and ducked for safety, confusion and alert rushed through their minds before everyone heard a voice coming from the smoke.

"-Let go of me! Put me down!"

From a cloud of debris and the enlarged opening in the wall, a man of dark hair with blue streaks walked out, holding to a small body that struggled fiercely over his shoulder. Another man follows after, wearing a white lab coat and blue-gray hair. Stepping out of the building, the man in the white coat turned around and raised his hand, a blue glow beneath his palm. The rubble and broken concrete moved under his motion that was without direct physical contact, filling and repairing the large hole of the building's exterior. A considerate action to fix what they had damaged.

The officers were speechless. Alphonse, however, recovered quickly once he saw who it was over one of the man's shoulders, "Ed?!"

"Al?!" Edward adjusted himself to see his younger brother.

Barry tapped Ryan's arm with his fist, gaining the other man's attention, "Change of plans. We're bailing." The serial killers were now utterly outnumbered, two many persons for either of them to handle even if they fought together, not the most favorable position for the butcher and his partner. Ryan shared Barry's train of thought and nodded. With the majority attention on the new men, the killers found their opening towards the unguarded gate and ran for it.

"Hey! Hold it!" Denny chased after them with his gun in hand. Maria remained where she was, her focus on the strangers that has Edward.

She trained her pistol at the unknown men. "Wh-Who are you?! What are you doing with the Fullmetal Alchemist?!"

"Fullmetal Alchemist?" Caster spoke with interest, her words the only thing he reacted to and not her defensive behavior. "Do you mean this boy with us? Is he an Alchemist?"

"An interesting title. I can only imagine what it must mean," Archer said almost flippantly so as he hears the heavy fist of his Master banging on his back, unbothered by it. "I assure you, we mean no harm to the boy," he answered to Maria, "Quite the contrary, we have our intentions to take him elsewhere for safety."

It was then that Envy leapt from the rubble, landing on top of the barbed wires. "Ch! No point sticking around."

The homunculus had been contacted by his Caster. Bearing through his Servant's usual idiot dramatic talk, the basic message was that the storm is getting too close now. Lust has already left, and Shakespeare informs that Father is calling for his children to return to their base. It can not be helped, Envy will have to leave Edward and his brother here. How the Fullmetal Alchemist managed to summon two Servants will have to be discussed with Father and Shirou. At least with two Heroic Spirits by the Elrics side, they will handle protecting the sacrifices.

"I'd leave here if I were you," Envy tells the people below, "In a moment, you're about to see a wild show. Better not get caught up in it for too long, or you just might end up dead."

Maria demanded him for further elaboration, but the shape-shifter ignores her and jumps to the other side of the wall, disappearing from their sight.

"Hm?" A curious sound from Archer as he watched Envy leave, "How odd, I know I struck that one with my lightning, and yet he left with no sign of an injury." Even a Magus couldn't protect themselves from the impactful power his lightning can cast, let alone recover from it so quickly.

"I suspect he must not be human," said the Caster beside him, "As for his warning, he must be referring to this immense wave of prana I'm sensing. Whatever it is, it will reach us very soon."

"Then we should find a better standpoint of the situation right away, and figure our next move from there," Archer suggested, he then addresses the people around him, "Come, we'll escort all of you to another location."

"Why?" Maria asked as she lowered her gun, eyeing the men with caution. "What's going on? Who are you both?"

Archer takes another step forward, noting his surroundings, "As much as I would enjoy introducing myself, there isn't much time now." He paused, eliciting attention to his spiritual senses, "...Ah, it appears we're too late."

"Yes," Caster understood, looking beyond the laboratory, "It has arrive, whatever it may be."

Once those words were said, Sergeant Denny returns, stumbling as he sprinted for the female officer in a panic. He lost trail of the killers, but that was not the reason for the aghast look about him, "L-Lieutenant! You got to check this out!"

"What is it Sergeant?" Maria tried to calm the officer. Denny could only fumbled in his explanation, pressuring Maria to come see for herself. The lieutenant turns to the men and brothers, "All of you, stay close!"

"Lieutenant Ross? What's going on?!" Edward called out, but the officers have already departed. The Servants and the Elrics followed after them - whether Edward wanted to or not. Exhausting himself from his continuous, futile attempt to escape the devil-grip of the man who has him, Edward slumped to recollect his energy.

Alphonse hurries to see him closely, "Are you alright br-?"

 _Are you even sure he's your real brother?_

He stopped himself from saying his most often said calling, what was so commonly spoken now like that of a forbidden word, the frightening idea told by the deranged butcher has implanted itself into his soul. He didn't want to believe it, the evil killer only wanted to get into his head and mess his focus, and yet Edward had wanted to say something from before, something he seemed so afraid to ask as if it would never be forgiven. _What if...?_

Edward rubbed his own head as if to collect and organize his thoughts, "I'm fine, just... been through something I can't explain easily."

Alphonse only listened, his mind haunted by the terrifying idea of the potential truth of himself, and failing to note the red marks in plain view on Edward's hand.

"What in the world...?"

They heard Maria's voice once outside the gates, finding the officers staring ahead, they followed their gaze. Alphonse gasped, stricken with shock. Caster calmly evaluated the scene while Archer's eyes narrowed in observation, both are now aware of the source of their triggered senses.

"Why did we stop?" Edward did not share the same view as the others. He pushed himself up to look over his shoulder, and when he did, he was appalled to what he discovered. "What the hell...?" He uttered.

Beyond the roofs of the buildings and reaching the sky, a massive black fog with strange electrical currents; swimming around like the fog withheld an unnatural thunderstorm. Rumbling with continuous hums as if it was growling beast announcing its hunger.

"W-what is that? A storm?" Alphonse doubted even his own reasoning. The appearance of this storm, it was unlike anything he's ever seen, nothing within the standard of _normal_. What in the world was it?

"It's getting bigger..." Edward realized, "Crap! It's coming!"

They witnessed the charcoal fog coat the buildings and the streets, rushing towards them, a black sea drowning everything in its wake. It couldn't be perceived as anything but dangerous, they absolutely have to get away from it.

"Inside the lab! Now!" Maria's quick-thinking suggestion instigated everyone to ran for the front of the building. They busted themselves in through the entrance and once all were inside, the officers slammed the doors shut with a push of their shoulders. Despite how clearly agitated and disturbed the rest of the group revealed, the Servants were by far the calmest out of all of them.

"What the hell was that?! There's no way that was some storm!" Edward said, "And put me down already! This is seriously pissing me off!"

Seeing that they may have to resign in this place temporarily, Archer at last listened the boy's demands, removing him from his shoulder and simply let him drop. Regardless of the boy being his Master, Archer wasn't quite inclined to be gentle with someone who has been rather crude, although it had been amusing nonetheless. Edward hadn't actually expected Archer to finally listen, much less that he did so ungently, and so the Alchemist yelped as he landed roughly on his back. He shot the electric man a detest glare.

"That storm... It's not something that any normal Magus could conjure," Caster said to himself in a thoughtful whisper, "I wonder, could it be a Noble Phantasm?"

Edward heard this and looks to the other man, "Hey! Do you know what that thing outside was?"

Caster answered honestly, "Not quite, though I may have somewhat an idea-"

"Ouch!" The officers jumped away from the doors, feverishly rubbing their shoulders that was bitten by the sharp low temperature the entrance has suddenly embraced. Something intrudes from the thin gaps of the doors; blistering white flakes crawled through, spreading all over until coating the entire entrance. It was a stunning display that baffled all but the Servants who eyed it with curiosity. Edward boldly went up to the encased doors and attempted to pull it open by the handles.

"It's frozen shut?!" Held together by an incredibly strong ice, was this another Freezing Alchemist situation? But this was somehow different, not even Isaac could make ice this strong. What was happening outside?

A hand presses against the doors beside Edward. He looked up to find Caster closely examining the frozen entrance.

"...As I thought, this is the work of a Servant," Caster analyzed without doubt, for in life, he is a man who has studied all levels of science and magecraft, and so was able to tell the difference between that of a magus casting, and that of a Heroic Spirit in due to his own current nature.

"A Servant?" Edward frowned at the man who was ever so strangely serene, despite what was happening. "Alright, what do you know? What is happening out there?!"

Caster contemplated his Master's question, "Hm. I suppose we could shelter ourselves here for the time being, though to be so close to battle is not something I would advise," a shame too, this place would have been an acceptable base for him. "To answer your question, and putting it bluntly, a warzone is happening near us; a battle between warriors of immense strength and power. They are not normal humans so to speak."

"You said Servant," Alphonse joined, having similar thoughts to Edward. "As in... Heroic Spirits?" That was another name Jeanne had referred to these supernatural beings, a group with an existence so beyond their modern science and understanding.

"Correct," Archer confirmed, "It seems you know enough of what else to call them, in that case, are you also aware of a competition known as the Holy Grail War?"

Normally, it is forbidden to make any mention of the Heaven's Feel ritual around civilians with no ties to the Mage Society, whether it could be said by a Servant or Master. However, it is believed by Archer to be foolish and futile in refraining the truth of the Holy Grail War considering their current position, and Caster would agree, believing it to be these people's right to know.

"The Holy what...?" Denny and Maria said, confused as the other.

"We know what it is," Edward admits, much to the officers surprise. He doubted this is the time to keep what he knows tight-lip any longer now. Fuhrer's orders be damned. "It's this insane competition with a bunch of lunatics fighting over some miracle-granting grail, with a lot of weird and _should be_ impossible stuff happening in it. Me and Al only just heard about it a few weeks ago."

He crossed his arms, "But what I thought I got from it was that this war is supposed to be a "secret", so what the hell was _that_ out there?"

"You are right to ask that," said Caster, "If that storm truly was summoned by a Servant, for it to be done so publically is a severe violation to the war. I worry that who ever is causing it has no pure good intentions in mind."

"What I'm getting is that some kind of attack is happening out there?" Maria deciphered, holding on to the Servants and Edward's explanations for another time to know more about this _war_. "If that's true, then we need to be there! Civilians could get pulled into it!"

"There isn't just one Servant, many of them are out there," Caster warns, "And for the Servants to fight so openly only enhances how much more dangerous they have become. It's not safe for any of you. You will underestimate their abilities severely if you have never been confronted by a Servant before."

"...I have."

Curious eyes looks to Edward. "You were faced with another Servant?" Archer questioned.

The state Alchemist nodded, "And I wouldn't have survived without the help of someone." The memory of Jeanne's given warmth and action that preserved his life still fresh in Edward's mind. "There were more after him, and I saw how they fight."

And they were strong, so ridiculously strong that they could not have been human. His chest tightens in remembering his close death from the blue spearman, and the overwhelming display of power he witnessed in East City from two grounded Servants and the one who shot from afar. On both accounts, Jeanne protected him from these warriors, she was able to stand against those he admit he couldn't handle on his own, for she had also mentioned to be like these beings.

"If those Servants really are out there fighting, then we have to help anyone that got caught in the middle of it. We can't let what happen to me happen to anyone else, they might not have the same luck that I did."

The gold in his eyes glimmered as he expressed this, even though he admitted to have almost died by these beings, his words were without waver no matter what roamed outside. He was thoughtfully regarded by Caster and Archer before they look to the others. The brother and the two officers; all have a similar fire in their eyes, determined. They did not speak of having the same experience as their young Master, yet still they will march into the unknown for the sake of the innocents entangled in the battle between Servants.

Neither Archer or Caster needed to ask for clarity, it was clear that these people were certain of their decision.

"...If that is what you wish," a smile formed on Caster, having received a hint of his Master's character.

"I'm suddenly reminded the time of my youth," Archer mildly laughed, a glint in his icy blue eyes. He spoke to Edward. "I had just as much spunk that you did. I can tell already boy, you'll be making a name for yourself one day."

"I already got one..." A clap between his palms, the metallic ring from this action sung, "and it's the Fullmetal Alchemist!"

The Servants watched with interest as Edward slammed his palms against the ice-coated doors. The alchemical reaction dazzled as brilliantly as Archer's power - though a humble comparison. The sparks scattered, and then...

Nothing. The ice was unmoved.

"...Huh?"

Edward blinked at the unaffected result of his Alchemy. The ice should have deconstructed from his touch and reveal a path out of the laboratory, certainly some form of a reaction had occurred, and yet nothing happened. The officers were dumbfounded, they were aware of Edward's ability to perform Alchemy, so to see it fail left them utterly confused. Archer and Caster only waited aside in silence, wondering what was supposed to happen.

"Your Alchemy didn't work?!" Alphonse approached his _maybe_ brother's side, baffled at the Alchemy's inaction.

"What the-? Why not?!" Edward looked at his own palms. How was this possible? The ice should have been shattered, he understood the components of what ice was, but then why did it fail? It's just ice, isn't it? "Dammit! Can anything just make sense for one minute!?"

"Alchemy you say?" Caster's eyes alighted with intrigue. "I see... During my arrival, from what I gathered, there is a process your Alchemy follows. The first stage being Comprehension; understanding the material, yes?"

"Uh, yeah?" The brothers confirmed, watching the man examine the frozen doors once more.

"You might think this is ordinary ice. That must be why your Alchemy didn't affect it. This ice is the work of Magecraft."

"Magecraft..." Edward repeated the word Caster used, remembering the term said by Jeanne back in Resembool.

Caster affirmed, "The line is thin between Magecraft and Alchemy. Ultimately, they are two sides of the same coin. Once you studied them to a point where you can differentiate them, you will also see just how similar they actually are to one another."

He ushered Edward to step back before raising one hand against the doors, **"O' Fire."** A flame ignited beneath his palm, it twirled before expanding all over the entrance, startling his onlookers except Archer. Though the ice was not real, Caster is familiar with illusion magecraft, and so knew how to bypass this, following the same logic as any ice would when it comes into contact with heat - otherwise it wouldn't be a convincing illusion at all, and its existence began to melt and evaporate.

"How did you do that?" There was amazement in Edward's question. He only knew one man who could perform Flame Alchemy; it was an art that would take years to perfect without scorching yourself on accident, and that was without having the formula that would promise no backlash. There hasn't been anyone but Roy Mustang to know this highly dangerous elemental ability, and where the colonel even learned it is a mystery that man intends to take to his grave.

There was also the unique way the Caster did when he summoned the flames. When it comes to performing Alchemy, there almost always have to be some kind of physical contact involved. For the majority of Alchemists, they would always need a transmutation circle to touch. For Edward, he would just have to clap in order to instantly transmute something, no circle required. But for someone else like Mustang, aside from needing to wear his gloves with the transmutation circle drawn on them, the colonel could instantly access his Alchemy of powerful flames with just a snap, and the element would erupt from his fingertips, but it follows a similar pattern of needing to touch a surface of some sort, like having to first unlock a door before they could open it.

This Caster made no such contact, nor did he carry a transmutation circle, only two spoken words and a motion of his hand, and the fire appeared - he simply opened the door that ought to be locked without even touching the knob. The only reasonable explanation Edward could come up for this was that this man must have been revealed the secrets of transmutation, something that can be possible if they have committed the taboo and saw the gates of Truth, a feat the Elric brothers had a taste of, though only Edward is able to remember.

When Caster saw the look on his Master, he was very pleased. Recognizing those eyes of someone who simply must decipher and understand what he is witnessing, an expression the Caster himself once had at a much younger age when he was introduced to the wonderful world of Magecraft.

"Would you like to learn?" He asked in return, surprising the boy. But as much interest he has to hear his answer, the Caster Servant turns back to the door, "I would be glad to teach you, but right now, let us focus on our main objective."

Another wave of his hand, and the doors opened. The moment it did, a fierce breezing cold wind intruded, tackling the humans and forcing them to cross and clutch their arms in order to protect the warmth they have on themselves.

"GAH! What's with this cold?!" Denny sputtered. "No way did winter come this early!"

"...Apparently, it has," Archer said with empty amusement, stepping outside along with Caster. The Elrics and the officers slowly followed, and once their head peaks out of the doorway to see, they were stunned beyond belief. Snow fell from the sky, everything in view from the roofs to the ground were covered in white piles of frost, and thick layers of ice encases the buildings within their vicinity. The cold was more than realistic, and those with human bodies shivered at the temperature.

Edward hardly believed his own eyes. "How did this... how is this _possible_?"

"It's like we've been transported to Briggs," Maria shared his tone. She once partaken a trip to the north, and to this day she regretted not wearing a second outfit and brought extra socks. She's regretting not doing so again, even though a minute before there was no fathomable reasoning that this area could become like this. _Where in the world did this winter come from?!_

"This is an example of a Servant's power," Caster answered evenly, walking towards the gates as he captures a few snow flakes in one hand, visibly impressed.

"A grand spectacle, I'll say," Archer comments. "It's safe enough for all of you to walk through it, though I understand you're not in appropriate clothing under these conditions." He peers through the establishments around them with a single glance, "The buildings are what's only been frozen, and it appears that any who may be inside will be trapped there until this weather disappears."

Caster signals the people within the laboratory to follow, "Come then, if there are those who managed to avoid being locked within, they may need our assistance."

The Elrics and the officers stagnantly walked towards Archer and Caster as their astonishment lingered to their surroundings, "Not even Alchemy could cause something like this, at least not something I've ever seen before," Denny found his ability to speak through his shock. "How strong are these Servants?"

"They're not to be taken lightly," answered Archer as he began to walk down the road, "If we ever come across one or more, find cover whenever you can, and if necessary, search for a way to escape."

"You said that people might be stuck inside the buildings because of the ice?" Maria asked, the first to follow while the others come closely behind. "Can't you free them?"

Caster's brows furrowed in consideration, "I can, but it's doubtful that they would be any safer out here than where they are now, considering the ongoing battle between the other Servants. It's possible though that they may actually be at the center stage of it all."

Edward tries to keep calm as he braces through the cold weather, "What if we clear a path for them, get them out and away from the fight?"

"Perhaps," said Archer, "Though it's unclear if there even _is_ a way to leave this storm, as we've seen it expand and claiming this area."

"This city we appear to be in," Caster correctly assumes. "It's likely that this storm will continue its growth even beyond this place."

"But from what we saw, it seems to not have taken over entirely as of yet," Archer indicates. "There may be time to search for the instigator of this weather. A challenge it will certainly be, and I look forward to overcome it all the more."

Although Alphonse was still overwhelmed with shock by this sudden weather, added to his inner conflictions and shaken trust, he cannot help but turn to Edward with a whisper, "Ed, who _are_ these guys?"

Edward looked at the men his brother was referring to, "...They called themselves Servants, just like that Lancer guy weeks ago, and what Jeanne said she was."

Alphonse quietly gasped, looking back at the men, "And you met them in the laboratory?"

Edward frowned as he began to explain, "There was this room I found, filled with transmutation circles drawn everywhere, a bigger one on the ground. I came across a guard and he attacked me," he stopped when he remembered Slicer mentioning another soul-bounded killer, "Al, did you meet with anyone who gave you trouble?"

Alphonse nodded, "Yeah, a guy name Barry. He...he was just like me, a soul bounded to armor."

"So was the guard I fought in the lab, only there were two souls living in the same armor," the information surprised Alphonse, "They were called the Slicer brothers. I managed to beat them, and Slicer was just about to tell me what that room we were in was used for, but then this woman and some other guy came out of nowhere. They killed Slicer and his brother, and were going to take me somewhere. They were after you too Al, I don't know why, I just knew I couldn't let them get to you. So..."

He looked down to his palms, "I tried to transmute a weapon from the floor, but for some reason, the reaction was pulled towards the largest circle instead. There was this beam of light that shot out, and I felt my hand burning."

"Your hand?" Finally, Alphonse spared a look to his brother's human hand, "Th-that's-! I thought you got rid of it!"

Edward eyed to the Seals on his backhand, "I thought so too, and now there's even more symbols than before. I didn't even realize I had this again until..."

"What? What happened?"

Edward recounts the events that transpired within the lab, "One of the guys who killed the guards, those... _monsters_ jumped at me. I felt him pulling this hand like he was gonna rip it off. The circle was getting so bright it blinded me for a moment, and then...they came."

He pointed at the men in front of them, being further questioned by the officers, "They just appeared, right on top of the circle. That guy wearing blue? He shot out a _bolt of lightning_ and knocked aside the guy who had me pinned."

Alphonse thought back what happened when he was facing Barry, that moment when something - a body, was blasted out from the laboratory. Was that the guy that attacked Edward? If he really had been struck by a power akin to lightning, Alphonse imagine it would be too difficult to get up afterwards. It certainly looked to leave a damaging effect, so how could the guy that emerged from the rubble be fine after that attack?

"-They told me their names were Archer and Caster, and then asked if I was...if I was their Master."

Alphonse sharply turns to face his brother, "They did? And said that they were Servants?"

Edward pauses for a moment, really _considering_ if he should, and then finally added, "Do you remember what Jeanne said back at East Command? She said that to summon a Servant, there had to be a ritual, something that's like...like Human Transmutation. That room I was in, it definitely looked like the set up of one."

"Then those guys are really...?" Alphonse steadily returns his gaze to the men that guides the group. _Could they actually be reincarnated warriors?_

"I don't know what they are exactly," Edward responded almost instantly, "But there's no way they're actually people brought back from the dead, even more ridiculous that they're from another world. There weren't even any materials in the room, no salt or sulfur, just blood that made the circle," he gritted his teeth, "There's just no way that they're...!"

Alphonse steps closer, "But Jeanne said that Servants aren't really resurrected people, they're copies of their original selves. A... a soul that's not really genuine," if he had his lungs, he would most certainly lost his ability to breath. What if... what if that's what Alphonse is?! If a thing such as creating an imperfect soul could be done, then could this explain his existence?

"...It's possible," said Edward, "But there's still something missing in this! Jeanne mentioned that the Servant is build from data, memories, and other information of the world, how would it..." An idea struck the Fullmetal Alchemist, "Wait... _That's_ how."

"What?" Alphonse saw something clicked in his brother's eyes. He was afraid to hear what conclusion the other Alchemist came to.

Edward explained, "Jeanne said that the data to build these Servants is collected from the World, but maybe not necessarily the actual world itself," or at least, it is a name out of many other possible identities, "You still don't remember, do you Al? After... _that night_ happened when we were kids, you don't remember seeing the Gates?"

Alphonse mutely shook his head, his soul too shaken for even a word to leave him, for what if there was a legitimate reason he couldn't remember that night? That was the only puzzle he was missing, why was it that Edward could remember seeing these Gates as he claimed to have when Alphonse could not remember anything between being deconstructed, and awakening in this body of armor.

"When I went through the Gates," said Edward, "There was just so much information, I can barely remember any of it now. But I knew what it was; data of the world and endless knowledge in Alchemy, so... what if that's what these Servants were made from? A soul is a manifestation of someone's existence, and if you build that with actual experiences, then it might actually be possible to build a soul from that."

It was a fitting reasoning, so much so, Alphonse nearly stopped altogether, was Edward implying this possibility from personal experience? Was his own brother...or maybe _not_ brother...?

"...Are you sure about that?" Alphonse questioned; a bare hint of accusation he could not contain, "You're absolutely sure? Is that how a soul can be made?" Is that how _he_ was made?

The shift in Alphonse's tone caught Edward by surprise. Was he absolutely sure? Well, it would certainly make sense, and it's so far the only sensible conclusion he can come up with, but he has no way of actually proving this theory. Furthermore, why was there bitterness implanted in his brother's voice? It was an uncharacteristic trait for Alphonse despite their current circumstance. Was he angry? What could he be angry for?

"Stop."

All halted at Archer's command. They were at the crossroads now, nothing but snow on the streets and frozen buildings in rusty glimmer. "What is it?" Maria inquired. She watched him bearing an intense focus at seemingly nothing, his attention moving from the road to the roofs.

"...Get to cover, now."

Caster felt the same sensation as Archer, and beneath his mild expression, he too was on high alert. "This way," he ushers the group to an alleyway - a place which Edward has grown to have such a dislike towards. The alley was wide enough for all of them to fit through. The Servants remained in front of them, peering around the corner as Archer tells the others to remain quiet.

"Why are we hiding?" Denny questioned in a hushed voice, seeing the serious look upon the two men.

His answer came at the toss of a vehicle, crashing into a light pole that bend from the impact.

Denny stumbled back with a startled yell, and would have fallen if not for Maria quickly catching him by the arm. She held him up as he and the lieutenant watched in astound. The brothers were startled, but they hurried forth and stood beside Archer and Caster, daring to look around the corner as they hid.

A man with green hair slid into their view, stopping himself at the center of the crossroads by jabbing his feet into the ground. Edward immediately recognized the man. This was the other warrior the blue Lancer was fighting that fateful night! What was he called - Rider! That was his name, or at least, his alias as Jeanne had explained later on.

They watched Rider hastily looked at all directions, appearing to try and decide what route to take, and witnessed yet another car being thrown from the direction he came from. Rider cursed under his breath, he clutched his spear and _slices_ the car in half with one swing. A gawking display of inhuman power before the group stepped back when one half of the car exploded upon its descent, save for Archer and Caster who resumes silently observing the other Servant.

"ACHILLEEEEEEEES!"

Achilles kicked off for a random direction, gone with such speed they thought to be impossible, for Archer and Caster, they thought this speed to mean him being a possible Lancer. Another person arrived, a petite young woman with snow white hair and a terrifyingly, yet enchanting, vicious look that seeks for the death of someone. The girl pulled a chain and dragged forth a ball of spikes, flinging it towards the other half of the sliced vehicle and stuck to it upon contact. She pulled it in and swung her flail forward, tossing the chunk of the car for the speeding man ahead of her.

"I WILL KILL YOU!" Her promise of merciless revenge shook the Elrics and the officers to their core. She sprinted for Achilles with a roar.

Edward inches himself forward, viewing the remnants of the destroyed vehicle before looking at the direction the man he knew as Rider and the other girl ran off to, "What was that-?"

A gust of powerful wind rushed passed them. Edward and the officers shivered as they intake their surprise at the unforeseen second tackle of the breeze, but this was not the work of the abnormal weather. They heard the screech of animals, and looked up.

Two winged creatures dashed across the sky, crossing their paths in mid-air, a clash of weapons rung. There were people riding upon the creatures, chasing the other in flight and battle; one carrying a lance and rode on his eagle-like creature, and the other carrying daggers with chains while riding upon her white flying horse.

"What the..." Edward was at a loss for words.

"A-Are those chimeras?" Alphonse asked, winged chimeras were certainly not unheard of. People who could ride them and fight while high in the cold sky however, that is an experience Alphonse will forever have embedded in his mind. Maria and Denny could think of nothing to say, but their reaction spoke for them, entranced by the scene above them.

Several arrows suddenly erupted from somewhere, the Pegasus Rider helped her horse maneuver the sky to avoid them until the Hippogriff Rider intersected the white creature. The Pegasus Rider whipped her chains to deflect the Hippogriff Rider's lance that thrusted for her side, and that was the opening her enemies sought for. An arrow struck the left wing of her Pegasus, igniting a blast and a pained shriek from the horse, the female Rider dove her animal for the roofs, and her flying opponent gives chase.

"Lets keep moving," Archer's voice pulled the brothers and the officers out of their stupor. "Be wary, we've officially entered the battlefield."

* * *

The inventions of Archimedes buzzed, their jagged rims spun consistently as they surround Saber of Red; rising to her feet, hardly deterred to the received attack from behind. These machines are built to withstand a barrage of attacks, just as the man who designed these machines intended and have accomplished. Their main mechanism is to defend, that their durability would challenge even a Heroic Spirit and not break easily under their incredible strength.

Though not indestructible, they are dependable, having braced against the forces of a Roman army in his world; the most powerful empire at the time. Their flight mobility offers a great range of adaptability in order to disrupt the flow of the enemies, and along with an additional feature hidden beneath the black exterior of the gears, they are just as capable of inflicting damage greater than the familiars within the storm.

The defense mechanisms of Archimedes were praised as the sole reason the city of Syracuse did not fall from Roman invaders, upholding a reputation of deflecting armies and destroying their soldiers, protecting the city with relative ease, their only reason for failure was by the cause of treachery from within the protected city. If not for that, there were surely no warrior in Archimedes' era to have successfully survive or bypass his inventions.

The gears circled the Saber in closing proximity, and three of them shot for her. A snake of three colors clocked each one of them in one slither, and the sword of Attila bid them away like fired bullets with one swing before retracting once more. The other gears did not do much favors, Attila was unfazed, clashing her weapon against their rims in one motion that would be impossible for anyone with one sword, but hers was of unique workings that could reach all the gears coming for every side with one swing.

These machines have dealt with invaders who have boasted their number and threats to overthrow, the gears durability rung true, but they have not been faced with the likes of the Destroyer of Civilizations, she who have also battled against the Romans, and achieved vanquishing not only their cities, but _everything_ about Rome.

Karna refocused on Attila once the unexpected surge of prana from elsewhere subsided, while perhaps Ruler may have a better understanding of what that could have been, he felt an additional presence to this mass battle. More Servants? His Master would have warned him if the man in white known as Father decided to send the other Servants of Blue, and even the Saber of Red was caught off guard by this surge. Was it not the Red Faction's doing, then?

Well, there is no point in paying attention to the unknown unless it meets him, until then, he'll resume his fight. He takes one step forward, closer to Attila who busies herself with Archimedes' inventions, a dance of deflection and strikes as her tri-color weapon whiplashed the machines all around her. He raised his spear, but before going any further, an alarm sets off in his head; a warning sense, and just as he realized this, it struck the side of his face, the sound of this single punch like the eruption of a volcano.

The deafening attack on Karna startled Jeanne, it had been so unexpected that she had just barely acknowledged the presence of the other Servant the second before they inflicted their hit on Karna, and sent the Hero of Charity flying to the roofs, _breaking_ through the cornerstones of the building and continuing afar. She forced herself to calm down and evaluate the new Servant; it was Hippolyta, the second Rider of Red, with the fabric over her shoulder glowing its brilliant color of red and gold.

 **Goddess of War**. That is what Hippolyta has wrapped around her, her Noble Phantasm. The fabric that enhances her strength, agility, endurance, even divinity. It was what Hercules had sought for in his journey to complete his Twelve Labors, which led him to search for and confront Hippolyta, and through a great battle between the Amazonian Queen and the would be greatest hero in Greek Mythology, Hippolyta fell in defeat, and the sash was obtained from her corpse. However, even though Hercules would have this sash in his possession, Hippolyta is the original rightful owner of this fabric, and thus will remain with her in legends even after death.

The Amazonian Queen whistled through her teeth, a bright golden light envelops at her side, and from it, a large chestnut brown horse steps out. To finally summon her steed, this is the moment where she intends to utilize all of her strength. Her eyes upon the direction she punched Karna to, Hippolyta hopped onto her horse's back and ushered her animal to move for the Lancer of Blue. Her mount neighed in eagerness for battle, and reached for the roof in a single leap.

Just as she departed, two of Archimedes gears shattered and were swatted aside by Attila's sword. Though they were durable, only very few things could survive her touch of destruction. She raised her sword, several circular portals of three colors and ancient writings spirals over the tip, and from them, a rain of beams plummets for the gears - a small dose of her Noble Phantasm which she has yet to fully release.

The ground suffered the beating of her power. Some of the gears managed to avoid Attila's barrage of powerful attacks that were too much to brace, but as the beams ceased and Archimedes' inventions resume their assault on Attila, shadows looms over the contraptions, and heavy bodies made of rocks dragged the machines to the ground. The flying golems had descended from the sky and began their struggle against the gears, though their rocky bodies were far more easier to break as oppose to the machines, their crowded numbers caused Archimedes' inventions to stagnant in speed and in fulfilling their objectivity, which was to prevent Attila from getting to Jeanne.

With nothing in her way, Attila sets her sight on the Ruler Servant, her Master's order unforgotten. Many would tremble at her impassive expression, the unrestrained message of "I will end your existence" in her unfeeling eyes. But Jeanne was not afraid, not even as more golems arrived and made their way towards the Ruler Servant. She met Attila's gaze unflinching, refusing to back down.

* * *

It was a battle between Archers of Red and Blue, of men with similar attitudes and nearly matching archery skills. One of them must claim victory, and so the Archer of Red; Arash, forms an idea.

Arash releases another dozen of arrows. He watches Archer of Blue ran to the next building, avoiding his every shot that lights the roofs before clouded with the disturbed snow. Although the Archer of Blue were successfully dodging his arrows, he was moving exactly as how Arash expected him to. With **Clairvoyance** , Arash could accurately predict not only his opponent's movements and train of thought akin to mind reading, but he could determine what his opponent may do the moment Arash attacks. Just as it happened at East City and to the Ruler Servant, in order for Arash to defeat Archer of Blue, he will distract, mislead, and place him in a position where great damage may be inflicted. The difference here, it shall be done by Arash himself.

He began to gather prana and make more arrows, every time he does so, there is a noticeable brief pause that he is sure Archer of Blue has taken note of, and has always taken this moment to fire his own arrows at Arash. Unlike the Persian Hero, the Archer of Blue is able to release a few arrows once every two seconds until Arash unleashed his next barrage. What's peculiar was that every time Arash narrowly dodges the attack, at close inspection that lasted an instant, Archer of Blue's arrows appeares to actually be clumps of bits that smelled like a cooked meal, and he couldn't help but savor the idea of having a bowl of chickpea with a side of rice for some reason.

Arash fired several more arrows after his pause, it was then he heard the rattling of bones, earning only a side-glance from the Archer of Red. The sound revealed itself to be the action of three wingless Dragon Tooth Warriors climbing to the roofs for Arash. He had just released enough arrows for the Archer of Blue to take cover from, and as for these skeleton warriors, they couldn't have come at a better time for the Persian Hero. He dashes for the hostile familiars, clutching his bow, he brought it down for the first skeleton warrior's head, crushing it and it's body in one swing. A sword aimed for his back - wielded by the second skeleton warrior, Arash threw his hand back, the bow in his grip stopped the blade by their tips. The other skeleton warrior lunged for him at the front, its weapon in hold.

The hero smiled as he simply ducked under the attack. The skeleton warrior from behind had half of its head crushed by the other familiar's carelessness. Arash pulled forth his bow and by the sharp tip, jabs his weapon through the ribs of the remaining assailant, crushing the final skeleton warrior with one more swing. The fragments of bones scattered over the ground around him.

At his moment in discarding the enemies of meager threat, a blinding blue light fired for him and struck his shoulder. The arm would have been severed from the body for any human, and if by chance no, they would have felt the instant burning hot food against the skin. Arash bared with the attack with only a slight reaction, his **Robust Health** ensuring this assault leaves only a minor injury. After gathering prana as he ran to avoid his enemy's arrows, he reloaded his bow, and fires a dozen more arrows for the Archer of Blue. This would have been the moment where Arash would take pause to form his arrows again, the moment Archer of Blue may also expect, but this time, the pattern is broken.

There is another skill Arash has. **Bow and Arrow Creation**. This skill is based on Arash's own talent in craftsmanship, that whatever material he is able to get a hold of, he could create bows and arrows from them in an instant. Whether he would have to carve it or pluck it from his surroundings, so long he has the means to wield a bow and anything that can make an arrow is nearby, it is usable for the Servant.

Arash lunged for the remains of the destroyed skeleton warriors the same time Touda ran and counters the raining attacks with his own. The Archer of Red collects four long bones that must have been the skeleton warriors femurs. Touda prepares another launch of his attack, reaching into the basket on his bag as he avoided the hail of arrows, eyes searching for Arash.

He found the Archer of Red, Touda readies his bow and ammo. Arash pulls the bones surrounded in his prana by the string of his weapon, his sight on Archer of Blue. Their aim locked, their power surrounds their ammunition, and at once, they let go.

The extra arrows that were sent by Arash sooner than it was thought surprised Touda. The Oni Slayer brought up his bow, the four bone arrows closes in, and there was an explosion upon contact. Arash stumbled when he received the blast to the chest from Touda, had he been without his skill of Robust Health, the Archer of Blue's firepower could have burned through his Spirit Core. He went behind a chimney as he recovers which took no time at all, but his attention is swiftly taken from above, where animalistic noise and the clashes of blades captures the entire sky.

He reverts his focus to where the Archer of Blue fell, the presence of his opponent growing more distant, but nothing like life flickering away, meaning Archer of Blue is still alive, possibly heavily injured. He should give chase, but seeing Astolfo in need of assistance, Arash isn't one to leave a friend by themselves.

Another moment of gathering prana, twenty arrows soared from his bow for the Pegasus Rider of Blue. She reacted to them, guiding her flying mount to defend herself and her animal. However, Astolfo quickly intersected Medusa, disrupting her concentration and thus, allowing Arash a clear shot. He kicked up another bone beside his feet, forming it into his arrow, and fires it for the Pegasus' wing. A blast and a pained noise from the animal as the Pegasus Rider lowered her mount closer to the buildings. Astolfo followed her to the streets, chasing the Pegasus Rider as they zipped over the road, until the female Rider made a sharp turn. The hooves of her Pegasus rapidly beats against the solid foundation of the buildings it ran upon before taking the air once more.

The Hippogriff Rider had intended to go after her, but he caught sight of Arash, and at an idea, he smiles. "Archer of Red! I could use more of your help! How about a team-up!"

Arash hears the Rider of Red, and he too smiled, "That sounds interesting, I'm in."

He ran to the ledge and jumped, he only fell for one level before Astolfo flew under, the Archer of Red landing upon the Hippogriff in the back. They took to the sky immediately, and Arash gazes his entire surroundings. He could count the many Servants in the area - Red and Blue. He formed an arrow in his palm when he discovered the Pegasus Rider of Blue, and began sending his barrage of attacks for her.

Medusa's Pegasus sped across the air in quick sessions of flight and gliding as they attempt to avoid all of the arrows falling from higher above them. While her animal is strong, any more attacks towards the wings would all it would need for this majestic beast to fall. She considers her options, though there was hardly any time spared for any thoughts to be allowed as she remains attentive in avoiding the arrows. Perhaps if her animals gains too much damage, she should bid it away and take to the streets for cover. If she remains in the sky, she is an open target for the Rider with his Archer, and though to be without her Pegasus would put her in a position considerably worse, it may allow herself harder to track by sight.

She flinched at the sensation of a Servant nearby, "Take ease fellow Rider of Blue! I'm here to help!" Medusa listens the familiar run of a horse followed by the music of contained thunder, and recognized the speaker. A nod from her, her mount went downward as the second Rider of Blue; Alexander, rode upon his horse that cackles with electrical prana from the hooves, and looks up for the Servants of Red in the sky.

"How innovative!" Alexander complemented, "With a war like this, all opportunities like combining tactics are possible! A proof of friendship! Of course, my proof of friendship is right here. Let's show it to them! _**Bucephalus**_!"

His powerful black horse announced with a fierce sound as the electrical energy around him turned thunderous, enveloping his and his Rider's form. In a flash like thunder, they became like one, and shot for the Rider and Archer of Red.

Astolfo yelped in surprised, he could not steer his Hippogriff fast enough, it would have been a direct hit for the Rider of Red, but Arash would not allow that to happen. He quickly takes to the front, pushing aside Astolfo to switch seats, and embraces the shock of the powerful attack. _Oh, this is a Noble Phantasm_ , he realized. This might explain how he could feel a bit of hurt. He was not arrogant though, if this attack could penetrate his Robust Health, then he would do well to avoid letting it strike his Spirit Core. He swung his bow forward and allowed it to intake the greater damage, sacrificing his weapon. He successfully protected Astolfo and his Hippogriff from the majority attack, but the affects knocked him off from his ally's flying mount.

Astolfo cried out, "Ara-! Oh, shoot! I almost said his name. I mean, Archer!"

A dozen bits of arrows made from hot rice shot for him from below. "AH! Wrong Archer! I meant my Archer!"

The Archer of Blue; Touda, had recovered from the blast almost instantly right as he had received it from Archer of Red. Though it was fortunate he managed to avoid a fatal hit to his head and heart in thanks to his sturdy bow, his shoulder and knee had been torn through. After retreating, his wounds were already beginning to heal, though it was in a way that wasn't quite something normal. The red sparks that must have been from the red candy his Master gave were sincerely ominous, Touda honestly thought. He has yet to get used to it.

But it certainly accomplished what his Master excitedly promised him it would. He suspected the Archer of Red thought Touda to be heavily injured, and he had been right for a few seconds, but Touda hadn't anticipate the other Archer to suddenly assist and taken a ride with the Hippogriff Rider of Red. He had been rushing for a clear vantage point, there was no catching up to the flying beast even if he was the fastest runner in the world, so he opted to find a tower to help the Servant of his faction. Thankfully, their young Rider of Blue had arrived and defended Medusa. Should either of them survive, Touda is willinging to offer a bowl of rice for the kid Conqueror - provided that he comes before Touda's Master does.

From their form of thunder, Alexander and Bucephalus landed upon the a roof, and together they evaluate. He most certainly got their Archer of Red, but his endurance was quite good, great actually. He wondered if he even harmed the Archer at all from his Noble Phantasm. The tough skin of the Archer reminds Alexander of his hero; Achilles, as that hero did too have a tough skin, an invincible one to be more precise.

Speaking of the hero, he spotted the familiar figure of short green hair dash across the streets near him, and what seems to follow him is a mad woman with a look that could kill anyone who dares step in her way, all the while throwing at Achilles with whatever object she gets a hold of with those large flails of hers.

More than eager to see his hero on his way for the Ruler Servant, Alexander ushered his horse to chase after Achilles. He was fast, certainly, but an animal is naturally faster than a person on foot, especially for mythical animals like that Hippogriff and Pegasus. Though for Alexander, he is assisted with a boost from his Noble Phantasm, and with yet another flash of lightning, they appeared beside Achilles, the sparks of Zeus constant in Bucephalus' hooves.

"Hey there Rider!" Alexander shamelessly cheered, though he was not oblivious to the obvious distress in Achilles' eyes.

"Huh?! Oh, hey. You surprised me there," Achilles managed to respond under his breath. He's been running for quite a while, certainly. Or maybe it was the girl behind him that gives a reason for his contained panic.

"Is that girl someone you know?" Alexander turns his head to look at the woman behind them, "She's been shouting your name over and over again."

A grimace drew Achilles face, and Alexander immediately understood. No fan like the young conqueror would not be aware of Achilles' history, including his accomplishments and victories against certain individuals. "...Ah, I see. I guess there is a chance that this girl is..."

Achilles cursed. It was already terrible facing Penthesilea again and his immediate reaction was to run the other way with his tail between his legs, now there lay yet another bruise to his shame, an audience from someone who had admitted his admiration of him. When Achilles promised Alexander a show to boast his abilities, he can assure the boy that it was not this at all. Achilles was caught off guard, that was all, and seeing the blood-thirst in Penthesilea's eyes, it was safe to assume that he couldn't actually fight her the moment he realized who she was, not that he wouldn't have a chance against her - he had beaten her before after all, but he knew that it would be too relentless if they were to unleash their powers entirely, this place will not be able to take it even with these hard ice there to protect the people inside.

It was also an issue having to acknowledge the hatefulness in Penthesilea's eyes, eyes that were now part of her much younger self, enlarging the guilt in his heart and the hesitance to fight her. The thought to kill Penthesilea again, imagining her cursing him with her dying breath of anguish after he plunged his spear into her heart, knowing that this was what happened last time, only this time it would be her teen self he would have to kill...

He hated to kill women because of her, he hated to aim for a woman's heart because of her. Perhaps, a fight between them, he might actually lose this time.

"Well, that's fine," the upbeat tone in Alexander's statement captures Achilles' attention, "I'll help you out then, and keep her off your back."

"What-? Hold on!" Achilles reached out, but failed to stop Alexander as the boy Servant turned his animal around and charges for the enraged Berserker.

Penthesilea recoiled at the sudden appearance of the other Rider of Blue, so focused was she on Achilles she barely acknowledged the young Servant's existence until he was heading straight for her. His adolescent body swarmed in lightning, he suddenly sped up. Penthesilea abruptly stopped, a ball of thunder punches her in the front, but she was only moved by a few feet. Her rage intensifying her strength extraordinarily. "I will kill I will kill I will kill-!"

To Alexander's shock, Penthesilea grabs hold of his horse - all the while still surrounded in the powerful thunderous element, and bare handedly threw him aside. Her body burned from the element, and she only heaved in disdain. "I. Will. Kill. You. _ACHILLES_!"

So lost in her rage, she only identified Alexander to be that of a Greek individual, and to Penthesilea, all Greek Heroes reminds her of Achilles, therefore, all Greek Heroes _must_ be Achilles. Whether they look like him or not makes no difference, her thoughts swarmed only of Achilles, and her vicious desire to take his life. A ferocious roar erupts from her, she swung her flail, gaining power as she spun it over her head, she launches it for Alexander.

Alexander's only option was to use Bucephalus once again and transport him and his animal at a safe distance away. But before he could, a body appeared instantly in front of him, and the flail was knocked away by the blade of a spear.

Penthesilea blinked rapidly, her mentality somewhat returning once she recognized the man in front of her and snarled. _This_ was Achilles, so long as she has her eyes on him, her mind somewhat stabilizes enough for her to only recognize Achilles, and not mistake any other Greek Hero as him.

"...If I keep running, I'm no better than that bastard Hector," Achilles will not shame the promise he made to his mother, what would be the point of Chiron's training then, a waste of time? A hero is not a coward, they don't turn away from the issue too much to bear, they challenge it outright without fear, and not let others suffer the problem rather than himself. He will prove this right now.

Alexander smiled, _I figured this would encourage you to face your fear, Achilles_. He knew the reason for Achilles' hesitation, but running away would do nothing so long as the problem will continuously chase after him for as long as it lives. He figured a touch to the other Rider's pride and loyalty to his allies would be enough for him to fight Penthesilea with courage. Even in the face of his few regrets, Achilles would not willingly leave a friend behind. It is one of the many things Alexander greatly admires his hero for.

Alexander pulls out his sword as Achilles tenses into a stance, the Riders of Blue stood side by side. Penthesilea's hands were crushingly wrapped in her chains, her eyes solely on Achilles. _I will make you scream,_ Penthesilea thought incessantly for her hated enemy, _I will make you beg, I will-!_

With a maddened battle roar, she lunged for the Servants.

* * *

The Caster of Red and the Assassin of Blue continued their waltz of ice casting and throwing dirks; Bradley's Assassin chasing to kill the Caster, and Caster toying with Assassin. It lasted for a while until Caster made a misstep, appearing to have slipped on their own ice of all things. Without stopping to consider this bemusement and waste this possible exposition, Assassin went for the kill, jabbing his knife into Caster's heart.

The Caster of Red merely smiled, and vanished like faded mist. The apparent existence of a living body was gone, and Assassin of Blue was left holding his dagger in mere air. Had he been fighting with an illusion after all? It felt all too real, was it possible that Caster had slipped in a decoy while the real Servant escaped unnoticed? He thought he would have noticed that, but it seems this illusion of a Reality Marble(something like it anyhow) may have offered Caster more of an advantage than he assumed. Enough to fool a Servant's senses.

 _"Assassin, are you there?"_

The Assassin of Blue; the many incarnations of Hassan-I-Sabbah - One-Arm Hassan, answers his Master King Bradley, "Master. I may have found the possible culprit of this storm. He is a master in illusion, even feigning me with fake doppelgangers of himself twice now."

 _"Are you with him now?"_

"No. He has escaped. Finding him - his real body I mean, may prove to be...more difficult than I imagine," a poke to his capabilities and pride as a professional killer of Hassan most certainly, but he promised, he will have his target.

 _"Let's put him aside for now. Archimedes has sent his new forces he claims will stop the storm from expanding. Your job for now is to seek out Ruler and do what you can to keep her alive."_

While he had a mind to continue his search for the Caster of Red, he did not deny Bradley's order. Though this storm is troubling, the safety of Ruler is the main priority of the Blue Faction. "As you wish." He ran for a random alley, and disappeared into the darkness.

* * *

"What the hell are these things?!"

Edward tried desperately not to ask this so loudly as he and the others comes across yet another skirmish between tall bodies made out of boulders and walking skeletal creatures. Behind an apartment complex, they observed the absurd scene of these strange beings, even stranger than the people who flew across the sky as these things were so explicably non-human, more than even a chimera.

"Familiars; special assistants used by the Magi," answered Caster as he knelt down near the broken bones of a defeated Dragon Tooth Warrior. "By the looks of these familiars, they are specially crafted by a Magus of impressive talents. It may be the creation of two other opposing Casters." He picked up a small bone, examining it, "Though somewhat weak compared to a Servant, their numbers alone can be enough to overwhelm an enemy. But there is a distinguishable difference in their build and thus, they have different advantages."

The golems for example were stronger than the skeleton warriors, but the skeleton warriors, being smaller, were much faster. His attention to the golems, he was reminded of the rumored work by another man he heard about during his life, a man whose research and discovery instigated the new era of the Renaissance. Caster never met this man, in fact, he wasn't sure if _anybody_ ever knew the Magus personally - an introvert who supposedly has never seen the light of day or stepped out of his house once. It went as far as for the rumors to spread that he was actually a working familiar with a conscience of a typical yet extreme magus. The only thing Caster has ever heard of the man was his fixation in creating golems as his assistants, a master at it. Was there a chance for these golems to be the work of _that individual_?

"And there's basically a bunch of them out here?!" Denny asked, intimidated by the sight of these familiars.

"It would be safe to assume so," Archer said as electricity swarmed his mechanical glove. "Shall I discard these familiars, young Master?"

Edward offered only a questioning glare, why should his approval matter to this man? He also wanted Archer to stop calling him Master, but just as he was about to tell him so, he paused at the sound of a muffled high pitch of a voice - a human in tears.

"-Shhh! I know you're scared but you have to be quiet."

He was not the only one to have heard this. The group looked around, and found the source of the noise coming from the other side of the skirmish between the familiars. Within an alley, a woman's head peaks out from behind a dumpster, holding her young child close to her body in an effort to keep him warm and hide him from the monsters that were so near. One skeleton warrior was thrown against the wall next to them. The mother shrieked, and her little boy cried louder.

"Someone's there!" Edward pointed to the alley.

"Oh no. We have to get them out of there!" Alphonse stood up, a restless urge to run for the parent and child.

"Certainly," A ball of lightning formed in the palm of Archer's hand, a sight that surprised the people but Caster. From his palm, the element shot forth and tackled the familiars. There were two golems and three dragon tooth warriors, Archer had only managed to strike down one skeleton warrior and partially harmed the second one. He inflicted tremendous damage towards the first golem, his power pushing the heavy foot soldier by several feet and away from the mother and child. With Archer's intervention, the familiars averts their attention to the arriving group.

Edward clapped his hands, a metallic ring echoing from this action, "Come on, work this time!" With an aggravated plea, he slams his palms against the ground. There was happiness when he witnessed the matters beneath his touch react to his alchemy. Lifting his hand, a spear constructed from the road formed beneath his grip.

From aside, the Caster watched with great interest, that gleam in his calculating eyes brightening as a whisper escapes him, "Fascinating."

Denny and Maria held to their guns and began firing at the skeleton warriors, but to their shock, the bullets merely bounces off from these creatures. "Your guns won't harm them," Archer tells the officers, these were creatures constructed by Magic and some form of it, no mere mortal weapons without enchantment or truly brutal strength could ever oppose these beings. "Allow us to handle this."

He summoned another handful of power, and shot for the skeleton warriors, destroying the second one.

"It would be best for all of you to stand back," Caster raised his hand in front of him, and from seemingly nothing, an item popped into existence in a mist of gold, startling his spectators but Archer.

The item that appeared in Caster's hold was a sword, refine and smooth, so much so that it does not seem to be made for direct conflict like any true weapon would, more fitting to be a decoration if anything. The handle looked to be strapped and crossed in bronze material, a red spherical gem at the end of the handle with flicker of dark like dancing fire inside. The sharp metal of the sword has a dark base, appearing to be made from a sort of black violet marble, with the rim of the sword gleaming like flawless crystals.

 **"O' Wind."** He pointed his sword for the other golem, the color of the red gem at the end of his handle changing to blue, and a vortex of gust burst from the tip. It shot for the second golem, and the powerful wind punched its chest, forcing the familiar back. His attack had been so strong, it left a deep fracture in the golem's chest.

A moment of amazement crossed Edward before he shook his head to keep his focus, he looked to the officers, "We'll keep these things back! Lieutenant Ross, Sergeant Brosh, go for the lady and her kid!"

The officers snapped out of their marvel, and briskly nodded, "Roger that sir!"

Edward ran for the skeleton warrior with Alphonse in tow, paying no mind to Archer who was eyeing him with surprise mended in curiosity, nothing like worry which would be a lesser reaction for the more protective Servant, who would otherwise gawk at their Master's seemingly foolhardy bravado in facing a dangerous creature, but Archer decided to allow Edward to act, as it seems the boy was that of someone who simply cannot stand to wait idly by.

 _He really will be a troublesome Master_ , Archer couldn't help but smirk at that.

The Fullmetal Alchemist threw his spear for a skeleton warrior. The weapon managed to jab itself into the ribs, but it didn't quite stagger the familiar as Edward wanted it to. Seeing this, Edward used his Alchemy once more, slamming his hands for the ground. A stream of matter erupted and collided with the dragon tooth warrior. That did a much greater impact, earning him an impressed look from the two Servants.

Archer decided to aid his Master and finished off the familiar with another shot of lightning, and for the last remaining skeleton warrior, the one partially damaged by Archer's previous attack, the Caster destroyed it with a point of his sword and another blast of wind that penetrated the skeleton's body, scattering the bones like they were dust.

"Watch out!" Alphonse shouted when the golem with the cracked chest went after the Elric brothers in a slow charge. Even for his doubt, even for his internal suspicions, he did not stop himself from reaching out and pulling Edward aside.

Archer threw another ball of lightning at the charging golem, obliterating its head and partially its torso. The Elric brothers gasped at the powerful display of his power, and breathing a sigh of relief once the golem fell. "Geez..." Edward muttered, "What kind of Alchemist can create something like this?"

 **"O' Heavenly Stars, Macro Cosmos."**

They heard the voice of Caster, and the heavy footsteps of the last remaining familiar. It was the first golem Archer had attacked, blue sparks of electricity surrounding its damage body. The brothers yelped at its approach, quickly moving to their feet just as the golem prepared to bring down its fist. Edward had already clapped to summon a wall to protect himself and his brother, but his eyes caught a shimmer in front of them, and the golem's fist bounced off.

A barrier had appeared, glowing an array of colors, shielding the brothers that separates them from the golem. The moment the large familiar struck the barrier, the mystical wall brightens in yellow, and the shards of the earth itself emerged, piercing through the rocky body until a lightning zipped through the barrier, shattering the familiar's entire being.

The brothers glanced at their sides. The two Servants stood there, holding up their weapons of a gauntlet and sword for the golem that crumbled, and fell in defeat.

The barrier soon vanishes. Caster knelt beside the brothers, his eyes seeking for any signs of injuries. "Are you both alright?"

The Elrics couldn't find the words to express through their astonishment.

"Whoa... that was incredible," Denny said. He and Maria were able to reach the distraught woman and her son, and with them, they were in wonder at the incredulous power they have witnessed. "You guys are by far the most amazing Alchemists I've ever seen!"

"Hmm... The word "Alchemist" truly conquers this country," Archer spoke mindfully, looking at his gauntlet, "I suppose in some way, you may see me as that."

The Caster walked towards the shaking woman, her child carried in her arms. He was able to instantly calm them with his peaceful expression, surprising them only briefly at the air of warmth radiating from his hands, and helped them adjust to this weather. "Th-Thank you," the woman said, "We were just leaving the grocery store when we saw everybody running. I didn't know what was going on, and then this fog rolled in, and suddenly everything was... like this."

"Do you know if there's anybody else that could be out here?" Maria asked gently.

The woman shook her head, her son snuggled closer to her mother, "I don't know, we were alone on the streets, but there were some people I heard from inside these buildings. The doors were frozen shut and I couldn't get them to open, even with the people on the other side helping."

"Are we gonna be okay, mommy?" The little boy asked his mother, his young mind unable to comprehend what was happening, and though the snow was a sight he would have enjoyed seeing, he had never seen his mother so afraid. "Are the monsters gone?"

The mother cuddled her son, easing the boy's fears and her own anxiety, "Yes, we're safe. These people are here to help us."

"We're going to escort you and your son somewhere safe, okay ma'am?" Maria reassured. The mother nodded in understanding. "Alright, let's keep moving. We might come across more people... and maybe more of these things." She eyed the broken pieces of the familiars, a grimace leaving her at how utterly unaffected they were to guns.

"It would be best to lead them away from here, where the battle rages close," Caster advises. "North from here though, I don't detect any threats. It should be a safe direction to take, at least for now it is."

"I'm not sure how much I can trust your "detection"," Maria said, her remaining wariness of the strangers distinct. "But the direction you mention does lead us to Central Command, if I remember and recognize this street well enough. It may be our next best chance."

That is if it hasn't been frozen over as well, but even so, taking the mother and her child far from here is a priority they have to take. An agreement between them, they start their way for the police station. All the while Caster tended to the mother and instigating a laugh from the little boy to better soothe their fears.

"...Hey. Caster, right?"

The Caster looks down to his Master, Edward. "Yes?"

"Right before that giant rock monster tried to attack me and Al, what was that barrier? Was that what you call... Magecraft, and not Alchemy?"

"Oh, that was one of the few abilities I know," he admits openly. "And to call it Magecraft... it is one, but it is also Alchemy, but to be more precise, it is not the Alchemy you are familiar with."

Caster saw the visual confusion in Edward's expression and elaborated, "You see, the Alchemy that this country knows, and the Alchemy where I come from differs in some ways. Though they do have some similar formulas, our Alchemy is based upon Magecraft, while your Alchemy is...extraordinarily unique."

He let out a breath of wonder upon remembering how Edward was able to manipulate the materials from the ground into a weapon. He had already been briefed of this world's Alchemy the moment he had entered this dimension during his summoning. It was so fascinating that Caster must absolutely find out more about it, research it and examine its properties, what makes it different from the Alchemy of his world and etc.

"You are an Alchemist then," Archer spoke up, his interest caught to their conversation.

The Caster mildly nodded, "Yes, and I have to wonder, Archer. Have you dabbled in Alchemy to create that gauntlet of yours?" He inquired, having detected traces of the practice he is more than familiar with. "Or had it been a pathway to what you have in your hand now?"

"...Some bit of it," answered Archer. Though he knew he shouldn't reveal too much to what may be his eventual opponent, it would be almost against himself not to brag about his own creation. "Most of this is designed by my own ingenuity. Though it seems you're far more familiar with the practice of Alchemy than I."

"I won't deny that, you could say that I help people become aware of it. _Introduced_ it to them so to speak."

Edward frowned at the Caster's vagueness. Archer, however, blinked as he deciphered this statement, his mind clicked in dawning realization, "Ah, so _that's_ who you are-"

He stopped. Caster froze as well.

"Hey! Why did you stop?" Edward stepped in front of them to see their faces. He found them to be stern, intently focused on something. But on what?

There was a distant sound of an explosion, startling everyone as they looked around for the sound. "Servants," Archer and Caster announced in a low tone.

"Stay behind us," the electric man recommended as he and Caster walked across the street until they reached a railing. There was a stairway to their left that led to a lower level of this block. The men looked over the wide area below them.

"Over there," With his gaze, Archer points to the disturbance. The rest of the group arrived beside the Servants and followed Archer's sight. The little boy released a sound of fright when he saw what was below, and buried his face into his mother's shoulder. The mother held her boy even closer, a hitch in her breath. Gasping, the officers and the brothers examined the scene.

In the wide area below them, more golems were there, they were considerably far, but there were a great number of them now. Suddenly, two people came into view, fighting it would appear, between a woman with a white veil over her head and a girl in purple clothing and armor.

"They haven't noticed us," said Archer. "If we keep moving, we may be able to avoid them."

The Elric brothers peers through the crowd of golems, catching glimpses of the intense battle between what they assume to be the Servants Archer and Caster had referred to. Momentarily, they observed the woman with the white veil, taken aback at the movements of her sword like that of a whip, and then looked to her opponent, receiving the endless attacks from all sides as she persistently defends herself.

"Wait a minute..." Edward's eyes narrowed for the girl, her long braided blonde hair whiplashed as she moves. "Is that...Jeanne?!"

Alphonse gasped, confirming his brother's sight.

"Hold up, you mean the girl from a few weeks back?" Denny leaned forward to obtain a better view.

Maria focused her sight on the individual, though the person was moving fast, she was able to recognize her by the hair alone, "Oh my... It _is_ that girl! What is she doing here?!"

"She's in trouble!" Edward concluded, and immediately ran for the stairs, but a single step upon it was prevented when a yank to his back collar pulled him away.

"I would refrain from charging there outright," Archer lightly reprimanded. While he admires his Master's spirit, the boy was getting ahead of himself now.

"Dammit! Stop doing that!" Edward ineffectively struck his fist against Archer's wrist, no matter how much it would hurt for a normal human. "Let me go! That's our friend down there!"

"A friend?" Caster said, sharing the bemused feeling as Archer. "You know one of the Servants below?"

"You got to let us go!" Alphonse pleaded the Servants, "The girl with blonde hair, she's a friend! She helped us before, she saved my brother's life!" He exclaims in hopes to convince the men.

"Has she?" Archer thought out loud. "And you're aware she's a Servant?" A possible enemy Servant at that, though there was something strange about her. His spiritual senses tells him that she wasn't a typical opponent in the war.

Edward growled under his breath, "She told us she's a Ruler Servant. A mediator or something, someone who isn't even interested in the grail! Now are you gonna let us go or make us watch our friend get killed?!"

As if a hiccup, Caster recoiled, "Ruler? That girl is Ruler?" The extra class Servant, acknowledged as neutral Servants whose main purpose is to preside over the Grail War's regulations. He was aware of the existence of Ruler entering this war from his summoning, and after a thought, it actually makes sense for a Ruler to come and answer this offense that threatens to take the entire city. What had been a surprised was that his Master and brother apparently knew this Ruler.

"It seems whoever created this storm, they obviously have no intentions to follow Ruler's law," though Archer suspects something else entails, but there was no time spared for mere speculations. "Well, if the war has truly become so beyond anyone's control, we certainly cannot allow her to die, especially if our Master insists so much. Still, you should let me take the lead."

He released the Fullmetal Alchemist and hopped on top of the railing. The calls to stop him did nothing, and Archer casually leapt forward.

Every person but Caster scrambled to look down, watching Archer land several feet below them without trouble, and make his way towards the fight. "How the heck did he not break his ankles?" _Or legs as a matter of fact_ , Denny wondered with amazement.

Edward grunted, not quite intent to answer that. He gestures for the mother and her son as he spoke to the officers, "Get them out of here and go as far away as you can, we'll catch up once we get Jeanne."

"Absolutely not!" Maria objects, "We can't leave either of you to handle this, it's too dangerous!"

"It's even more dangerous for them!" Edward countered, his finger towards the fight, "Jeanne needs our help! We're not going to leave her!"

"Then you'll need us!" Denny flinched when Archer began to charge another handful of electricity. Even from a distance, he felt his body hummed at the power. "Come on Ed! We can't lose you guys again! We're supposed to be your bodyguards!"

"But you heard what Archer said, bullets won't do anything to those things, and besides, you guys have to make sure that these people are safe," Alphonse counters, "You got to focus on them right now!"

The officers looked over to the quivering mother and her shaking child, muffled little sounds of fear into her shoulder as his mother tried to calm him with a lullaby. The sight of them tugged Maria and Denny's hearts. It is true that they were assigned to guard the Elric brothers, but did that mean every other civilian are only secondary concerns? Risk the lives of these people in favor of another? They were military, in service for all of Amestris' citizens, surely they cannot actually put these frightened innocents in danger?

Edward grabs the railing, "If you're worried about us, don't be," he jabbed his thumb behind him, pointing to Caster, "This guy and Archer have been doing a pretty good job watching our backs. I'd say we got just enough help, but whatever the case, I'm not leaving Jeanne to fight by herself!"

The officers offered a weak glance to the other. The lieutenant grumbled under breath, and a look of relent is shown, "You brothers better be careful, or you're going to _get it_ from us!"

"Lieutenant-" Denny stops at her look.

"They're right, we have to first get them out of here," Maria ushered for the woman and child. "And there's no way we can leave Jeanne on her own."

Denny hesitated, but not for too long, he too wished to first ensure the safety of the civilians, and for others to go and aid Jeanne. He wanted to stay and help however he can, but if there really is nothing he could do as his only weapon is proven to be useless against those creatures, then he'll have to trust the Elric brothers and those men to save the girl.

An understanding in their eyes, the Elric brothers voiced their gratitude before bolting down the stairs. Caster was not too far behind, but before completely following, Maria called to his attention.

"I don't know who you are, or who that other man is, but I'm putting in my faith that you'll look after those boys, because let me tell you: if something happens to those brothers, I _will_ come and find you. Never mind that it's our badge on the line here, it's those boys' lives."

From her warning, Caster nodded with sincerity, taking her words to heart, "I understand. Believe me when I say that Archer and I intend to defend them with all of our power." While he would have liked a preparation from the beginning, he is not so utterly defenseless, and he won't leave those children to fend for themselves.

At his leave, Denny spoke to Maria, "He seems nice, I wonder who he is though?"

Maria kept her gaze of Caster's back before turning away, "If we meet him and the other guy again, maybe we could learn more about them."

She thought back her questioning the two strange men, the moment when they were leaving the laboratory, and while Ed and Alphonse were having a private discussion, she started her minor interrogation with the strangers.

 _"How do you know so much about these Servants?" She had asked them. Though the meaning of the name was new to her, it led her to wonder how these strangers possess such knowledge as if it was common._

 _"Because we are like them," Caster was the first to answer, without any hesitation._

 _Maria had just started to comprehend his absurd statement when Archer laughed next to him, "You're certainly an open individual, aren't you Caster?"_

 _"She'd asked, and I answered," was Caster's response, simple like depicting the current weather was indeed cold. "To_ know _is a right everyone has."_

 _Archer, clearly that of an intellectual, immediately understood, "On that, we can agree."_

At the time, she was convinced these men weren't quite right in the head, but after seeing what they could do, perhaps...

She shook her head and puts the thought aside for a later time, and approached the woman who managed to lessen her child's tears, "Lets go ma'am. Stay close to us."

* * *

After destroying another golem with a powerful swing from her flag, Jeanne moved back to avoid the flexible sword of Attila. She was outnumbered, and the Saber of Red was overpowering, but Jeanne will keep fighting, even for the inexplicable disconnection between her Command Seals and Attila, Jeanne refuses to allow an easy defeat. She cannot afford to die now, there is so much happening in this country, and if she perishes, she will never know what the Red Faction intends to do, who then will preside this war if it is beyond the power of the Church? Even as one Servant, she refuses to leave while the war is as it is, but as of now, things are not in her favor.

At least, even if she falls here, Rose will be safe. Should the moment of her death comes, the girl from Liore will be teleported elsewhere. Even if this city were to be doomed and she would have only herself to blame for failing to stop the Red Faction, the Holy Maiden could find comfort in her friend's safety.

 _No Jeanne! Don't think like that! Please keep fighting!_

Rose's words echoed in her heart, her please and prayer intertwined, and pumping Jeanne with an emotion of panic and desperate hope. Hearing the voice of Rose, her feelings and everything else, Jeanne's strengthens her resolve, and fought on.

A golem rounded her and threw his fist, but a lightning from aside pierces through its body. She leapt away just as another lightning shot for Attila, pushing the Saber far, her sword embracing the attack. Jeanne breathed heavily, regaining stamina before looking over her shoulder for the attacker; was it a Blue member coming to her aid, or was it a Red member who missed their target?

A man in blue attire revealed himself, his arm outstretched as his gauntlet cackled with lightning, aiming specifically at the enemies around Jeanne and not her solely. Not another assassin who has come to also try and take her life then. The Holy Maiden instantly read the invisible True Name of the Servant, and prompted to say his cover name, "Archer, are you with the Blue Faction, in service of the military?"

"I do not know what you speak of. I serve only one Master," the man sends forth another powerful lightning, destroying two golems in one shot. "And might I add, he's been a very interesting young man. I believe he is someone you know? He seems to be familiar with you."

Not a moment later after Jeanne processes the question, a river of concrete rises from the ground, knocking away the other golems, a wall separating her from them.

"Jeanne!"

She whipped herself around, the voice instantly familiar, and the sight of him a confirmation, followed by an unforgettable figure in full armor. "Ed?! Alphonse?! What are you doing here?!"

They shouldn't be here. This is a warzone of several opposing Servants. It's too dangerous for them!

Edward ignored her question, running towards her until he was close as Alphonse turns around and acted as their watchdog, "Are you alright?" He saw the cut and blood on Jeanne's cheek, her face laced in dirt, and her armor clearly beaten, "You're hurt! Come on, we got to get you out of here!"

"No, I have to stay!" Jeanne shouted over the sound of Archer unleashing another attack. "Central City is in danger, one of these Servants is responsible for this storm. I have to find them before it takes over the entire city!" She then stopped with a gasp. The instigator of the calamity around them, her **Revelation** warns her its presence.

"Uh. Guys?" Alphonse yelled to the teens behind him. Jeanne and Edward looked over to the youngest Elric, and to where he was facing.

"Hello there~"

From out of nowhere, a person in mainly white stood several meters away from them. They held a book in one hand, and grasped their medallion in the other. The sight of the person shocked Jeanne of her clear-headed focus, "You?!"

She knew this person to be a Servant, and yet there was something incredibly strange about them, more _human_ than they were a Servant, but even for this contradiction, she was able to read the name of the enemy Caster, and the discovery of this Servant's identity, to _know_ who this person is, an emotion so unlike for the girl of a mild nature - a bitter feeling of powerful resentment stirred within her.

The face of her most closest friend appeared in her mind. His ever warm smile and kindness towards all children. The man who she have witnessed first hand to be a good person _once_. She tucked that image in her mind, her eyes upon the Servant of Red. _This Servant, this Caster... He was the reason...! He was the one responsible for what happened to-!_

"It's an honor to finally meet you," the Caster of Red greeted, " **Jeanne D'Arc**."

The book and their medallion glowed, a barrage of icicles were summoned. A flick of their wrist, the icicles - sharp as the deadliest knives, shot for the Elrics and the Holy Maiden.

* * *

Mordred growled under her breath. Though she was stronger than Lancer of Red, the spearman of duo weapons was swift, that prana piercing spear was more than distracting as she had to rely on her sword instead of her armor for protection, and there was no telling what the other spear might do, so she opted to avoid any inflictions from that as well. She clearly was besting him however, she only needs one or two hits, and the Lancer will fall before her, just the moment required for her to lay a killing blow.

Diarmuid managed to block another harsh strike with two of his spears crossed. He had thought the Black Saber was merciless, but this Saber was like a wild animal, ferocious and her fighting style hardly any elegance to it. She is ruthless, but not too careless as she is placing her efforts to avoid a hit from his red spear, and was smart enough to consider his other weapon to be just as threatening. But even for her power, she was sloppy. It's how he was able to keep himself alive by having the contained patience and focus the rampant Saber of Blue lacks.

Though an impressive swordsman, Diarmuid suspects that if he were to push her buttons just enough, her temper will cloud her focus, and she'll leave herself a wide opening for him to inflict a fatal wound or a wound that would greatly hinder her. But as of now, he is becoming overwhelmed by her strength and ferocity. In a case like this, he should find himself a better position if he wishes to defeat the Saber of Blue, and fulfill his Master's orders. The sooner he may defeat her, the sooner his Faction will accomplish their goal, and this storm will come to an end.

Diarmuid has his opinion about the attack on Central City, he is by no means a supporter, but it would be ahead of himself to oppose his Master. In life, he failed his king Fionn, a man who trusted Diarmuid and considered him a friend. Diarmuid ultimately betrayed that trust of his dear king, committing adultery with the fiancé of Fionn; Grainne. He shouldn't have accepted her kiss, it was out of uncontrolled passion and the influence of his cursed beauty mark, but he gave into Grainne's wishes, even when he had no choice.

He never faulted his king's existing anger, what happened with Grainne was a moment Diarmuid will forever hate himself for, and so to be in this exotic Holy Grail War, he will make amends with his past mistakes, and regain his pride as a knight by offering his Master what he failed to for Fionn; his absolute loyalty, servitude, and obedience, no matter how much he may internally question the orders he receives.

With his red spear, he swatted aside Mordred's sword, a kick to her torso. Upon her distance, he turned and dashed down the road, causing the Saber of Blue to chase after him. "Coward! You would rather run than face me, have you any honor?!" Saber demanded the man.

Diarmuid would more than enjoy a fair fight, but although Saber of Blue managed to spur his chivalrous side, it was clear that this Saber would use whatever means to win, not quite an invitation of an _honorable_ battle he's willing to accept, at least not with her. He did not fall for the bait, and resumed running. Not only to seek for a better advantage, he will have Saber stray farther from Ruler.

A furious sound from Mordred, she sped after her opponent.

* * *

The Saber of King Bradley stood completely motionless, her sword held tightly in her grasp as she waited in silence, purely focused to her surroundings, and where the invisible Servant may strike next. She lashed her sword to the left, intersecting the invisible weapon of her opponent. After another pause, and she did it again, concentrating her efforts to the instant an attack was approaching. Even without her "instincts", she is not so inept to know when to block, no matter if she could see them or not.

Arturia Alter pushed forward, a powerful swing the falling snow instantly vanished from. She realized then that she had missed, and the invisible Servant approached. There was an impact to her armor, right where her heart hid behind. Arturia Alter was forced back by considerable distance before she regained her footing by stomping her feet into the ground. She was hardly if at all winded, as if it was a push she'd only endured.

 **"Mana Burst."** A violent release of her blackened power, it spiraled around her form before discharging, enveloping the area in a brief vortex of darkness. The silhouette of Shuwen was pinpointed by the shadows, and she lunged for him. A loud clash between her sword and his shaft, the force of her attack shoved Shuwen away by meters, a laugh of adrenaline escapes him.

 _What strength_ , Shuwen noted. Indeed, this is an opponent he wanted, a powerful warrior whom he can test his skills against. To survive his fist that should have left her immobile even with her armor, and he was sure this Saber was without an invincible body like the previous Rider of Blue did. She was just _that_ strong. This city has proven itself to have quite the impressive Servants, he can only imagine what more does the Blue Faction have in store. A shame though, as he often makes conversation with his opponent who has not perish from his blows instantly, the dark Saber was not the sociable type, a silent killer as cold as almost an Assassin but without the discretion.

Though Shuwen was not a man who is without rationality, that he is not without acknowledgement the sort of nature the attack on Central was, he accepted it all. Not out of respect to follow his Master, he was here to fight, and whatever tactic his Master decide to impose, so long as it doesn't ask anything _unreasonable_ for Shuwen, he shall carry out his mission. It was an opportunity as well, to challenge himself against dozens and dozens of great fighters, would he by chance fare off against his older self in this war? The self that he wishes to fight more than anyone? If such a thing comes to light, he will fight even more eagerly, but if not, then he shall make use of the Holy Grail and have it happen; a challenge against his older self, to fight the old man who have reached enlightenment the young Li Shuwen is only a few steps away from, and see which of themselves is the greater man, that is his wish. For him to reach that goal, he will fight as his Master orders him to.

The result of her Mana Burst lingered, Arturia Alter swung her sword for Shuwen and he deflected it again with his spear. It was until the dark fog faded away that Shuwen was able to hide himself again. There was a possibility that the dark Saber could unleash her Mana Burst to see him again, but that would drain her energy, unless she has herself a very capable Master who could provide her an endless supply of Mana without exhausting themselves. If that is the case, Shuwen will have to kill the Saber at once, which has proven to be quite not so simple, what strength indeed.

His senses triggered at the approach of a Servant from behind, he distance himself from Saber to watch her and the arriving Servant, he was introduced to the sight of a fellow member of the Red Faction, the other Lancer Diarmuid. Shuwen had just avoided another attack from the dark Saber when she too noticed the other Lancer's presence. Diarmuid, who seems to be running from something, looked up at the distinction of two Servants presents, a look of great surprise when he spotted the dark Saber. "You-?!"

"I'm not letting you get away!"

An angry voice arose behind Diarmuid, Shuwen almost mistook the voice to be of Penthesilea until he saw the Servant. A sword had flung for Diarmuid's back, and it took no less than one second for the Irish warrior to deflect it with a turn of his body, but not for the charging Saber who rammed into the shaft of his yellow spear, a brute action that surprised Diarmuid and even Shuwen, though the Martial Artist inwardly applauded the dedication.

Mordred reclaimed her sword, and begun a session of slashes, every attack however, Diarmuid was able to deflect them with his spear in each hand, even switching them so to throw off raging Saber. Shuwen sensed an impending power from the dark Saber, and he moved for Diarmuid's side. "Behind you," He warned.

Diarmuid concealed his startle and calmed once he recognized Shuwen's voice, sensing the dreaded of power as well. He kicked off to the side, and Mordred practically squawked when an attack of black energy flew for her, barely reacting in time to step aside and avoiding it. The Lancers of Red separated themselves, each across the other, as were the Saber of Blues. Mordred paused, stunned at the sight of the dark Saber, behind her helmet was an emotion undetermined, for so many have flashed through her heart.

"...Father."

Arturia Alter did not respond, instead she released another wave of black energy for Diarmuid. The two-weapon wielder dodged yet again, further separating himself from Mordred, though this wasn't what he had in mind, it does help to have the support of another Lancer, despite the underhanded means of his ally being invisible.

"H-hold it! That's my opponent-!" Mordred stopped at the rattle of her instincts, and she held her sword up just in time to block something from out of thin air. "What the-?! An invisible Servant?!" Dammit, she does not have time for such cheap tricks!

It was then that her _father_ unleashed another wave of Mana Burst, her overwhelming power had the two Lancers stumbled as the outline of Shuwen was seen once more, it was an opportunity Mordred could have salvage, but because of the unannounced release Aturia Alter's power, she too stumbled. Shuwen recovered quicker than the others and barreled through the onslaught of the darkness, igniting a punch to Mordred's back. A short pained yell from the Saber as the force of the punch had her body thrown forward, Arturia Alter merely sidestepped to avoid the other Servant of Blue, and did not look back when there was a collision between the body and a building.

"You're quite dismissive of your ally," Diarmuid comments, "And she even called you her parent. Not much love for your kin? I honestly feel compassion for her."

"She is not my concern," the dark Saber answered coolly, "Now then, let us finish where we left off. I will not allow you to escape this time, Lancer."

The two Lancers of Red were positioned side by side, facing the blackened Servant of unnatural strength. Yes, _unnatural_ , for there was something to her that would otherwise claim even more absurdity to this Holy Grail War. Could the Grail really be capable of summoning a Servant with such a dark nature? There was also the impending wrongness about the air around her, that air being the visible shadows reeking from her toxic, so distinctly unnerving and menacing. Just what _is_ this Servant?

As they evaluate their opponent, as both sides held themselves in place, waiting for the right moment to attack. The dark aura of the Saber was suddenly masked by a vicious power from behind, red energy spews like untamed fire. The emotions of Mordred was nearly indescribable, but there was a feeling oh so familiar, and that was her anger, her _hatred_.

Damn her father. Not so much as a word, and yet that Saber would waste them for their enemy, not his own _son_? As for that Lancer, speaking his pity when she did not want them, that he thought she did made her want to skewer him all the more. Surely, her father must hate Mordred, her last words to her in life, surely they must have been lies. Denying her the throne was not because Mordred was unfit to be king - _lacking the capacity my arse_ , Arthur hated Mordred, simple as that. Her father hated her. He must have! Why else, would he be in this form? This form that was so unfit for the glorious king that outshone every gold there ever was, _every other king that ever lived!_ Surely, Mordred was the reason, she was the one who turned her father into this.

Why the charade? Why act as if she wasn't the sole reason for the downfall of Camelot, for her glorious king to become like this? Her king has every right to yell at her, so he should! Demand execution! Avenge his kingdom and knights! But instead, it was the same thing that happened after Mordred's reveal of her heritage. Nothing. Not a reaction, and not even a distaste, as if the infamous Knight of Treachery wasn't there. That she wasn't _worth_ that much.

 _Not your concern... You will regret those words father..._

Damn her father for her continuing silence towards her. Damn that Lancer for his words. Damn that... that damnable annoying invisible foe! Mordred will show them, for with this sword she stole from her father, now spiking with her power built upon her molten deep resentment, she _will show them all!_

* * *

As the intense battle escalates by the second, the machines that has the potential to stop the storm has arrived at last. Rising from the roofs of Central Command and speeding across the sky, they surround the storm by the top, their rims spinning to build their power up before activation. With the combination work of Archimedes and Medea, these new machines will be what Central City so desperately need. The black core of the gears split open, a mirror with ancient Greek lettering drawn upon the glass lit in a violet and blue glow.

The built up energy then spat out, connecting with the rest of the gears now in full circle of the storm, and reflecting their light towards the other. A sheet of their power then rains down, settling upon the deserted ground, trapping the entire storm in a clear blue barrier. The storm had proceeded until it met the walls of the barrier, stopping its growth in an instant. The city of Central was ultimately rescued, but the dire situation was not over yet.

Within the storm, the Hero of Charity, Karna, regained his footing once he was able to stop himself from flying, carving the ground of the roofs with his heels to a stop. He looked up, winged golems descended for him, far more golems than it was originally counted for there to be. Reinforcements from the outside? His attention is briskly taken away from a charging animal coated in furious gold. He leapt aside, deflecting the head of a spear from the Rider, and observed them without a distinct reaction.

Hippolyta pulled the reigns of her horse, halting and turning her mount to face Karna as the winged golems arrived. No time was wasted, the familiars went for Karna. Unfazed by the crowd that surrounds him, Karna merely swung once, and a fire was unsheathed by the blade of his spear. Several golems disintegrated from his blade and flames, but more comes from all side. He lashed his spear to the side, a contact between his tip and the blade of Hippolyta.

Karna indulged the Amazonian Queen with powerful thrusts of his weapon, yet from them, Hippolyta was undeterred, the Goddess of War shining brilliantly as her strength competes with the Great Hero of India.

 _"Lancer. The machines built to stop the storm have arrived,"_ Karna's Master informs. _"Once they activate, return to Ruler by any means necessary."_

 _I see_ , thought Karna. By "any means necessary" is to imply that if he were to fully use his _power_ , he may be able to disrupt the illusion of this storm, the extent of his power will momentarily be blocked by the machines that circulates this entire area, thus focusing all of his might into ultimately destroying this storm. Though to use _that_ would mean nothing will survive. However, Karna is confident that his Master knew this as well, and it would not be acceptable for anyone should he actually proceed without any sort of handicap.

Though this power of his is admittedly devastating, he will spare the residents if he were to aim precisely. At worst, he will damage the foundation of the buildings, not including the ice, for that will be easily destroyed, and at best, the Servant of Red, all the golems in the sky, and this storm will be disintegrated.

 _"Lancer, the machines have activated. The entire storm is shielded by a barrier."_

Karna clashed his spear against the female Rider of Red's weapon, _"Then shall I..."_

 _"Yes, and just so that we're not careless:_ _**By my Command, utilize only 1/4 the power of your Noble Phantasm, Karna**."_

He nodded, "I understand."

Hippolyta's horse cried out in distress, and the Servant herself felt it as well. She immediately backed away. "Lancer... So you intend to end this. Here and now."

"Yes, Rider of Red. Though to use it fully, this city would not survive, so I will not be going all out. However..." His red cape suddenly glowed, "That does not make this any less of a threat to you." The fabric changed shape, "Nor for anything that may be within reach of it."

* * *

The surprise attacks of ice with fatal points was stopped and shattered at the yet again appearance of the elemental barrier conjured by the Caster of the Fullmetal Alchemist. Though even if he had arrived late, Jeanne was there, and she wouldn't allow any harm happen to the Elric Brothers, not while she still draws breath.

Flames bursted from the protective walls. Caster of Red raised their hands, forming a shield created out of ice from thin air, and embraced the flames that lasted until their shield completely melts. The Caster of Red laughed in utter glee, "I was wondering when you would appear, _oh fellow Caster_. This world is practically the domain that mirrors your work."

"...You know who I am. Have we met before?" The Caster of the Fullmetal Alchemist asked, tilting his head. "I'm sure I would have recognized you."

"Not in this form I've taken," was the Caster of Red's answer, no clarifications. "I spoke rather highly of you to my Master, I'm sure it would be pleasing if we were to formulate a meeting."

"You're very kind, and I'm grateful for the invitation, but I must decline. My priorities lie in serving my Master, and currently, you've tried to do harm. Furthermore, if you are responsible for what's happening here, then it would be not in my best interest for us to associate."

The Caster of Red leaned to their side, eyeing the brothers behind Jeanne with subtle interest, "Your Master huh?" a black bird suddenly appeared, perching itself onto their shoulder, the Servant of Red inclined their head for the bird as if to listen whatever whisper leaves through its beak, and then straightened their back. "Well, if that's your decision."

They outstretched their arm for the sky. "I've overstayed my welcome, here's myself hoping all of you will last," his body began to vanish in a midst of silver blue dust, "Until we meet again."

"Wait! Caster!" Jeanne demanded the ambiguous Servant, but the Caster of Red escaped, leaving the Ruler Servant without any answers she wanted from a member of the Red Faction.

"Who the hell was that?" Edward asked, baffled from the other Caster's mystical leave, but any chance of a response was severed when the golems broke through his transmuted wall. "Gah! Get back!"

With a gesture, their own Caster transferred his elemental barrier against the golems, defending the Elric brothers and Jeanne. "Beware!" shouted the Caster, the very first intense sound to come from his voice. "The golems are moving to surround us!"

"And let us not forget about our main enemy," declared Archer. A powerful attack from his gauntlet, the thunder held the Saber of Red at bay, yet it was not quite enough to completely deterred the enemy Servant even with her body covered in wounds. One would question how a Saber such as Attila, with **Magic Resistance** , could still be affected by Archer's power, but it was a question Attila did not have the drive of curiosity or care to know, and Archer does not have plans to enlighten her with so many enemies around them.

"Al! Here!" From the ground, Edward transmuted a small item with a white tip, tossing it for the other Alchemist to draw a transmutation circle with. "I'll cover you!" With a clap, he transmuted again. A pillar rose from the street, smashing itself against the golem that came from behind.

As Alphonse hastily draws his circle on the ground, another golem approached from Edward's left. His hands were inches away from touch, but before they did, Jeanne _leapt_ over his head and with the point of her flagpole, jabbed into the golem's chest, breaking its body once she pushed the familiar into the ground.

Edward was stunned once again at Jeanne's abilities. The girl turned to him, "Ed! You have to get out of here! I'll clear a path for you and Alphonse. Once I do so, run for it as fast as you can!"

Edward snapped out of his stupor, "Hold up! You said that one of these Servants made this weather, if that's what's happening then we have to find him together!"

"I can't allow that, it's too dangerous!" Besides, the perpetrator have already just left, the other Caster she is sure to be the creator of this illusion, but to get to him, she must face these countless golems and the emotionless Saber of Red, and an even more pressing matter; she must ensure the Elric brothers' safety. "You have to leave!"

"Not without you!" Edward countered, another pillar summoned to strike away another golem. Aside them, Alphonse have accomplished drawing his transmutation circle, and repeated his brother's action, his own pillar colliding with two other golems, "We came to help you Jeanne!"

"Y-you came for me?" It was inexplicable for her reaction. Jeanne understood the kindness of these brothers, and yet to hear it from them, to hear that they come for her, it granted her heart with such an undeniable uplifting feeling, even when believed she shouldn't be so at their refusal to depart for their own sake.

This would only mean that these brothers should leave all the more. If Jeanne really is their reason, then she would never forgive herself if something were to happen to Edward and Alphonse, even she cannot foretell how far this battle will evolve. It is a miracle itself that not one building in this area have been destroyed as of yet, but who knows how long that will last?

"Look out!" Alphonse slammed his palm against his circle, a wall emerged hurriedly in time to defend Jeanne and Edward from another sudden arrival of golems, the familiar's fist slamming into the wall.

"On your right!" A shout from their Caster as his sword burned, a ball of fire blasts from the tip and for the golems nearing the Ruler Servant and his Master. The Holy Maiden moved away, taking Edward by the arm and pulling him along. The Fullmetal Alchemist shouted in surprised before catching up with Jeanne, running for Alphonse and Caster's side.

The sight of all the golems appalled the Alchemists. Alphonse muttered, "There's so many of them..."

Jeanne agreed. In fact, there were _too_ many. From what she's seen, there wasn't this many golems, there _shouldn't_ be this many golems. Were they reinforcements from the outside? How are they arriving without her noticing? Another thunderous sound of an attack from Archer, and Jeanne grimaced. There was still the trouble from the Saber of Red and the immense threat she provides, she must be stopped, but with Jeanne lacking the advantage of having no leverage over the Servant of Red, then all that awaits is a very difficult battle.

Archer released another barrage of lightning from the fingertips of his gauntlet, the enemy Servant was impressive in endurance, he honestly speculated what it would take to stop this strange spirit. The Saber once more recovered from his attack, and swung her sword forth, even from their distance, the abnormal sword of intriguing mechanism stretches for the Archer to which he raised his gauntlet in order to deflect.

The gauntlet braces the attack and the Archer was pushed away considerably. Her strength was remarkable, but his gauntlet has proved its sustainability by not bearing a crack from the attack. This is his proud invention after all, were it to fail him by even a scratch and the Archer would have delve into its construction for improvement.

He eyed the Servant, but a group of golems takes him as a distraction. He merely raised his gauntlet and destroyed the familiars with a flash, however, once his eyes readjusts for the Saber, he finds her no longer facing him, but has sprinted for the other members, and for a specific individual.

"Ruler! The Saber comes for you!"

Jeanne have dealt with destroying a golem as Edward was not too close aside when they heard the Archer. The Ruler Servant was unprepared when she found the Saber running towards her. She separated herself from the rest of the group in order for any collateral damage done by the Saber to avoid them, but with the time to do so spent, she only had a second to defend herself from Attila. From the Saber's weapon quick and capable of long-range, Jeanne succeeded barely deflecting the alien weapon from avoiding her heart, allowing it to strike her shoulder instead.

"Jeanne!" Edward yelled, he ran for her and the Saber, transmuting a pillar from the ground that slammed into the Saber's body. Attila flew momentarily before dropping into the ground as if a fallen meteor. The state Alchemist then rushes for the girl, her shoulder almost completely severed with a great spill of blood as the Ruler grasped to it in pain.

The Ruler Servant's ability to self heal was draining due to her fatigue, lacking enough energy to heal herself at once. "Edward... stay back!" Jeanne breathed out, she had meant to push him away, but with her numb shoulder, she had only mildly shoved him back just as the Saber recovered, and prep to swing her sword for the Holy Maiden.

"Watch out!" There was an unexpected assault to her shoulder, but with one look, it was actually the form of Edward pushing his way to her front. Jeanne couldn't even find the breath to scream.

 _Edward No!_

The Fullmetal Alchemist had thought to defend her with his automail arm, but he was still comprehending the strength of a Servant, even with this arm, the Saber will no doubt crush through it and _kill him_! Without a thought, Jeanne grabbed hold of Edward's waist, held her flag in front of the both of them, and determinedly spun her weapon to compete with Attila's. The whip of Attila's sword struck the majority of the flagpole, but the strength of the destroyer knocked them away.

"Brother! Jeanne!" Alphonse cried out. Archer had already summoned his lightning and struck the Saber into forcefully distancing herself, but he had been too late. He never expected the boy to risk his own life for the Ruler, what foolish bravery. If the boy lives, Archer should both applaud and reprimand the teen.

A loss of their balance, Jeanne and Edward slid across the gravel, the Holy Maiden holding tightly the body of the Fullmetal Alchemist. A pained grunt from the both of them. Jeanne was the first to quickly recover, while Edward attempts to do the same.

"Are you alright?!" Jeanne searched for any injuries on the boy, when none was found, there was a breath of relief until Edward revealed his struggling expression, and followed his sight.

"Oh no..." The fingers of his automail twitched, not fully closing to his palm that bore a slash, a dislocation to his wrist that provides only the impossibility of moving it, but not a complete severe. His arm seemed fine on the outside, but clearly there was some sort of disturbance to the automail with the way Edward is holding to his shoulder. "I can't move it. Something broke!"

There had been a brief contact between the tip of Attila's sword and his automail, but even for this brief touch, it had been strong enough to break an important component within his automail, his hand the only thing to have suffered greatly in exterior.

The golems began to close in, Jeanne and Edward prompted themselves to stand. "Damn...I can't use Alchemy without this arm!"

"Stay behind me!" Jeanne told the Alchemist, facing the golems with her flag in hand. No matter her injury or if she were to gain any more, she will not allow harm to reach Edward.

An incantation was heard and they raised their heads, a dome of a crystal like barrier surrounds them, shocking Edward while Jeanne looks to the one who created this.

" **O' Fire and Wind**." The Caster of the Fullmetal Alchemist raised his sword. The two spoken elements swirled at the tip before shooting like river that overwhelms the golems. The barrier stood to protect Jeanne and Edward from his casting until the attack ceased and the golems were destroyed. "Are either of you harmed?"

"Jeanne's hurt! Can you heal her like what you did with me?" Edward asked the approaching Caster.

A nod was earned and the hand of Caster instantly glowed, "We're surrounded by familiars," he said as he began healing Jeanne's wounds,."Far too many I'm afraid. There seems to be an endless amount of them."

"So it appears," Archer said, walking towards them as Alphonse ran for his brother and Jeanne.

"Ed! Jeanne! Are you guys alright?!" The debate of his existence was forgotten for a moment, his worry for the brother he loved and the friend he cared only in his mind.

The answer could not be given when their attention returns to the rising Saber of Red, though continuously affected by Archer's power, she was not winded in the slightest.

"You are quite stubborn, I'm actually impressed," The Archer spoke to the Saber, "However, I see it in your eyes that you seek nothing but destruction. A pitiful life, this being said as a man who sought to create and surpass. It seems it would be rather troublesome if you were to remain in this war, a threat not only to this city."

He glanced at his surroundings, examining and counting the horde of golems, "As early as it is, and I have only just arrived not too long ago, there is no other option." He stepped forth, "If you all wish to persist, then come, I shall offer a demonstration, before I bring about your swift end."

Energy builds up in Archer's gauntlet, a volatile sparks scrambling and dispersing around his outstretched hand, "Stand back and behold!" He tells the people around and those behind him, "Behold this power! The power of _the Gods_!"

"What's he doing...?" Edward watched the electricity grow wildly in the palm of Archer, enlarging into a great static reaction that surpassed the size of Archer's body. "What the hell kind of Alchemy is that?"

"Not Alchemy," Caster answered as he set up another barrier to protect the teens and himself, "His **Noble Phantasm**."

* * *

Three Servants initiated their Noble Phantasms simultaneously in each corner of the storm, their surging power noticed and felt by every Servant in and out of the city, felt by the Servants that hid within the rest of the city and outside of it. One of Sun, one of Passion, and one of Lightning. Their sight upon the enemy Servants, and any who will be caught in the midst of their attack. Together, their expression and power shouted: "Here I come!"

The sky is filled with an intense heat of yellow and orange. The light of the sun that suddenly appeared, noticed by every Servant, save for those in the middle of honing their great ability, and those who are distracted by it. The ice surrounding the buildings immediately melts, the weather itself stopped its cold pelting at the presence of Karna's spear, engulfed in an actual star. Hippolyta ushered her horse to flee, but no matter where they would go, neither they nor any Servants and Familiars nearby, will escape the Hero of Charity.

 **"Vasaki-"**

The mad red prana of Mordred's sword spiked, a geyser of her intense emotion erupted as her helmet disappeared; her intense emotion marred across her face. The Lancers of Red stepped away from her vicious air, so alike to their Berserker Penthesilea, while the Dark Saber of Blue merely observed. Even in the face of this, the face of her signature power, Mordred could still not instigate a reaction from her father. Her unrestrained resentment of her heated rage darkens, further empowering her sword.

 **"Clarent Blood-"**

Surrounding the gauntlet wielded by the Archer of the Fullmetal Alchemist, a current of electricity, dazzling in a violet sheen as they spun into a whirlpool. His audience from behind watched, the Elric brothers gawked while Jeanne and Caster observed, cautious and analytically. The power around Archer's hand increases by the minute and growing in size, it was as if he had a thunderstorm in his reach. The Saber of Red stood there, watching the growing element circling at Archer's bidding and fingertips.

 **"** **System-"**

One more word, and they will unleash great power. One more word, and it will define everything.

* * *

Far away from Central, far secluded from civilization, several Command Seals glowed, and one word was spoken...

 **"Return."**

* * *

By the will of a command, by the power of a Seal, all Servants of Red vanished in a flash of light.

Two Servants in the midst of unleashing their Noble Phantasm abruptly stopped themselves from saying the names of their Noble Phantasm, nonplussed at the disappearance of the enemy Servants. One Servant of Blue, however, was too blinded to notice.

 **"-ARTHUUUUUUR!"**

Mordred brought down her sword, and a furious beam of red charged forth.

 **"Saber. I command you move to the right."**

The command of Bradley teleports Arturia Alter in a flash of light, successfully avoiding the blast and reappearing on top of a building, away from the effects of her _son's_ Noble Phantasm. The dark Saber watched the result of the treacherous knight's attack shot across the road, and off to an unknown location. "That foolish child..."

Within a different section of within the storm, Achilles and Alexander were bewildered. One moment, the vengeful Penthesilea was opting to reach out and tear the both of them limb from limb - more specifically Achilles, but then suddenly, she vanished.

"...What the hell just happened?" Achilles eases out of his stance.

Alexander thoughtfully hummed, "That was unexpected. Did her Master **commanded** her to be elsewhere?"

The use of a Command Seal from a Master of the Red Faction? That would make the most sense. Whatever the reason though, Achilles sighed in relief as he gazes at the sky, thanking the Gods. A longer gaze, and he noticed something. "Hey! Look up!"

The falling of snow have completely stopped, and the wintery sky was dispersing.

"Could it be?" Alexander said. He looked around, the ice and snow ceasing to be. "The storm, it's vanishing."

The night welcomes itself again in a steady pace. After Karna was able to cancel his Noble Phantasm in time, he viewed the establishments around him. The buildings were being freed from their ice cages, not melting, simply vanishing, the illusion of their existence exiting into nothing. "Master, the Rider of Red have disappeared." He calls to his Master, and putting focus to his spiritual senses, he acknowledged a considerable decrease in a number of Servants. Have all the Servants of Red vanished as well? There was only one way the Servants could have left so instantly, it would be if the Red Faction members have called their Servant to retreat, using a Command Seal.

Had something happened to the Red Faction? Or had the Red Faction obtain everything they needed here? Had all this been a mock fight to gather information of the Blue Faction? Well, whatever the reasons may be, the invaders are gone, and the city has been spared from any escalation of tonight's attack, for now. He receives word from his Master, the storm was seen on their side to be completely fading, and was told to return to base. Affirming to heed his Master's request, he entered his Spirit Form.

From the sudden disappearance of the Saber of Red, one by one, the golems that had the group of Alchemists and Servants outnumbered and nearly overwhelmed, began to vanish like mist, and the storm around them faded as well.

"W-what's happening with these familiars?" Alphonse questioned, astonished at the golems evaporation.

The Caster, at once understanding what was happening, was able to explain to them, "They were illusions all along." Truly, this is the work of a most impressive Illusionist.

"They weren't...real?" Edward stared in disbelief. A hopeless venture to find any sort of explanation he himself could define, he only stared, dumbstruck.

"Illusions..." Jeanne repeated. No wonder it seemed too strange for there to be so many golems, they were as unreal as the smothering cold weather. She listens to her spiritual senses, there was a sudden declining number of several Servants, but she felt none of their deaths. Her conclusion, it was the work of a Command Seal, her only clue being Attila, who had instantly vanished before them. Her Master, and probably the other Masters of Red, must have teleport their Servants elsewhere. Had they accomplished what they intended to do here? Was all this just a scare to rile up the Blue Faction? Or was it to draw out Jeanne, the Ruler Servant, so to resume their assassination attempt?

She gently shakes her head. There was no point in assumptions that will not be answered, right now, she can only feel the utmost relief that the chaotic battle has ended, and a sense of calm settles throughout the city.

"Well, that was a disappointment," the power of his Noble Phantasm dying down, Archer confessed, "And I was just about ready to exalt my grand ability. What a shame..."

With a gentle release of her breath, Jeanne faces the two Servants, properly greeting them. "Thank you for your assistance, but if I may ask, if you are not with the Blue Faction, who are your Masters?"

"I suppose since you are Ruler, it should be safe for us to reveal him," said Archer, he placed his gauntlet hand over Edward's head, surprising, annoying, and flabbergasting the Fullmetal Alchemist in being under the grip of such a dangerously powerful weapon. "And as you are friends with our Master, that offers even more ease for us. Isn't that right, boy?"

"Can you _not_ leave that thing on my head?" Edward moves to escape the hand that inflicts destruction.

Jeanne blinked once she digested Archer's answer. She looks back at Edward, "You don't mean... No..."

She walked towards the Fullmetal Alchemist, and without a word of asking, she grabbed his human hand. "H-hey!"

Despite Edward's protest, Jeanne examined his backhand. She was stunned beyond words. "That's not possible... _Two_ sets of Command Seals?"

"Indeed," Caster said, stepping towards Edward's side, "We were just as surprised to find out. Another irregularity of this war it would seem, along with the extended number of Servants."

But Jeanne watched Edward willingly gave away his Seals, by that action, he declared himself to deny having any part in the war. Was this the Holy Grail's doing? Was there something in Edward that the Grail refused to let him reject the position as Master, while that might be possible, what on earth could have caused the Grail to grant him _two_ Servants?

The Ruler Servant raised her head, "Ed, how did you get this. I need you to tell me everything."

The Fullmetal Alchemist was without words for a moment, he spared a look to his Command Seals, to the Servants on his side, and then to the entire area, beaten with proof that some kind of war occurred here.

A war, _The Holy Grail War._

He returns his golden gaze to her aquamarine eyes, "Only if you can tell me what the hell happened here." Even if it will only be a moment before insanity returns, he would like to find some sensibility once more.

* * *

 **And so, a sense of calm reigns over Central...**

 **And there you have it. My gift to all of you as we enter 2019. Sorry for the long, long wait, but as you can see, this had been a long, long chapter. I know this is so late but I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas! And Happy New Years!**


	12. Men of Revolutionary Minds

Chapter 12: Men of Revolutionary Minds

The storm that contained the cold weather faded within seconds, all of its illusions vanished from existence, and the warmth of the night returns to this section of Central City. The buildings that held civilians as its hostages were free from their frozen prison, and cautiously, they step outside with a perplexed mind for the passing storm, and the sight of the beaten surroundings in some areas. One particular facility had been in a state of panic when they could not find an escape until they discovered the doors to the outside have lost its frozen hold, and they were open after one push.

"What the hell got us stuck here?" One guard said, a sigh of relief to see the outside again. "At least the earthquake finally stopped-GAH!"

He and the other guards looked around until they spotted the building beside them, finding it in rubble. The people of the prison could never imagine that over a dozen blocks away, the work of a single Saber of the Blue Faction, who let anger overcome her and the magnificent power derived from her obsession, was responsible for the unintentional destruction of the Fifth Laboratory.

"S-Sir!" Another guard ran back into the prison, shouting for his superior, "The laboratory next door, it's gone!"

Within the rest of the facility, voices riot from the prisoners inside their cells, their shouts heard through the hallways.

"What the hell was all that noise?!"

"Hey! What's going on out there?! Somebody tell us!"

"We're all gonna die! What else could that shaking been about?!"

One prisoner, in his own private cell with the darkness his only company, hummed a soft melody. "Aw... Is it over? What a marvelous sound that was, I wonder what happened?"

Of course, Kimblee knew very well the noise of sweet destruction. The alarmed cries from both inmates and officers have been just as delightful to listen. It reminded him of the Ishval War, a war he had the most fun in partaking the decimation of the land and its people before he was incarcerated for killing his superiors. The ruckus moments ago vibrated his body with such pleasurable intensity, it led the man to wonder what had riled up in the city.

"I have a feeling," he remarked only to himself, "It's going to get very interesting around here."

* * *

Military vehicles rolled into the district, finding residents leaving their buildings and more wandering the streets in disarray - having experienced the abnormal winter up front, and chose wisely to distance themselves from the chaotic clashes, inhuman screeches coming from the center of the storm. Comforted by soldiers and medics, the citizens were offered medical treatment and warmth while questioned what they have suffered through. Only frightful answers were relayed, their demeanor shaken by the fierce actions they heard around them moments before.

Maria and Denny, along with the mother with her child, were found by a group of soldiers, confused as they were at the sudden end of the storm, but relieved nonetheless. The lieutenant and the sergeant allowed the mother and her son to be taken to safety before they insisted to the other soldiers that they must head back to retrieve the Fullmetal Alchemist, his brother and friends. Backtracking to the place with reinforcements, they discovered the Elric brothers and Jeanne, but no sign of the men known as Archer and Caster.

"Guys!" Denny shouted, running down the stairs with a team of soldiers following behind, "Is everyone okay?!"

"Is anyone hurt?" Maria hurried to the teens, eyeing for any wounds they may carry. Remarkably, she found no such damage among the brothers or Jeanne, apart from the sight of Edward's limped automail arm.

Edward looked towards the approaching officers before remembering his hand and its additional red marks. Debating if it was worth the time to explain this, he buried his hand into his pocket, hiding the view of his Command Seals, "We're all fine. But my automail is busted real bad." He will have to make a call to Winry for this. She certainly would not be happy to hear the repeated misfortune of her work, just as he most definitely would not enjoy hearing her reaction.

"Well, let's be thankful that was all that's been broken," Maria glanced at the soldiers who spread across the streets, watching for any threat that could still be around. "Where's Caster and Archer?"

There was a short pause from the brothers. "They're right here-" Edward turned around, but only found the empty streets, "What the-?! Where did they go?!"

Alphonse let out a small scream as he gripped his helmet in disbelief, "Were they illusions too?!"

Jeanne stepped in to ease the brothers panic and the officers confusion, "As the both of you looked away when you saw officer Denny and officer Maria, Archer and Caster believed it would be best to leave, believing that they're no longer needed for the moment." And surely, it must put a strain to Edward's energy if they were to remain materialize. It was best that they allow their Master some rest as they have used a considerable amount of power.

There was not much to worry with Archer. **Independent Action** grants the Archer class Servants the essential of not needing Mana Support from his Master, meaning Archer's existence would not drain his Master's energy. It is not the same for Caster. Although Caster's mana consumption is not as demanding as it would to support the likes of a Saber or worse, a Berserker, in consideration for his Master who is not a Magus, he entered his spirit form while Archer follows in suit so to avoid the inconvenience of being questioned by the arriving soldiers.

It still shocked her, even with the circumstance of the war as it is, Jeanne has never met a Master of two Servants. Despite Edward's explanation of what happened, there was nothing to reason how an Alchemist is able to summon _two_ Heroic Spirits. While she is thankful that their presence have kept threats at bay and the Elric brothers safe, this was such an unlikely anomaly among so many others, Jeanne cannot fathom a reasonable explanation.

 _Has the Grail malfunctioned this badly_ _?_

If so, what is the possibility of the Grail's instability? Would it even grant the winner's wish correctly? Would it be too dangerous if it does so, no matter how innocent the wish is? If only she could access the Grail itself. Forbidden as it may for a Ruler Servant to reach the Grail, there are certain conditions that must be met for a Ruler Servant to touch the Grail, and that is the question of the Grail's stability. But with the Grail's destination unknown to her and her ability to find it inaccessible, she can't confirm this and do what she must to fix it.

Maria frowned, "So they just left? There were a lot questions we had for those men, and I was hoping to thank them for looking after you guys. Are you sure none of you are hurt? We should get you three checked at a hospital just in case."

Edward asserted with a shake of his head, "Don't bother. We're all fine, really. That Caster guy healed us pretty good," so good in fact, he actually never felt so better, even the lingering pain of the scar in his chest was completely gone.

The lieutenant considered for a moment, her expression turned stern, "If that's true, then please excuse me for this..."

Edward yelped at the rough grab to his shoulders, "Don't ever try a stunt like that again! You did what you had to for Jeanne, but I'm talking about what happened before all of this!" She stopped herself at Edward's panicked eyes, offering another glance to the investigating soldiers around them. "...We'll discuss it later. Right now, we should get you guys somewhere safe. There's no telling what other surprises might show up tonight."

The Fullmetal Alchemist grumbled. No matter the insane happening of tonight, his mind clings to another objective. He has to get back to the Fifth Laboratory, there must be more evidence and other plans to include the use of Philosopher's Stones. But currently, he is reeling with what happened moments ago; the incomprehensible arrival of winter, his fight against monsters made out of rocks and bones, and the discovery of more Servants - surviving yet another encounter of one, only to be saved by Jeanne once again.

It truly angered him, allowing Jeanne to risk her own life constantly to save his own. Just when he thought he could do the same for her, the moment the tip of that strange tri-color sword touched the palm of his automail, a cold shiver crawled his skin at the realization of the power the silver haired woman has. If he had fully braced that woman's attack, his automail would not have been the only thing destroyed. Lately, he has endured too many battles that were not in his favor, he needed to find a way to improve himself and stop burdening others.

Before the sergeant and the lieutenant's arrival, he had his talk with Jeanne. She was able to explain that until a moment ago, Central City was under attack by these Servants, eight of them, and that there was apparently eight other Servants who were allied with the military that came to stop the invaders. Remembering the appalling scene of the entire district being under snow, the buildings frozen over, the scene of those powerful super humans, their flying mounts, the abnormal contraptions that were these _familiars_ and weapons of the Servants, the sudden arrival of those two men; Archer and Caster, whose abilities were far stronger than Alchemy could ever hope to achieve, a thing which Caster swears them to be called Magecraft.

There were so many questions bustling within him, it made him restless. He cannot so much as think about getting sidetracked, even with his damaged automail. "Wait lieutenant, I need your help to get whatever we can at the fifth laboratory, there's got to be more that I wasn't able to find yet."

Maria shared a look of unease with Denny. It was immediately noticed by the Fullmetal Alchemist. "What? What's wrong?"

"Uh...well..." The sergeant began, pulling his own collar nervously, "We're gonna have to tell you somewhere in private." He and Maria had heard passing news between the other officers as they made their way here, about what was lost during the bizarre event of the winter storm coming to an end, and the name of what was lost.

"Has there been any severe damage to the city?" Jeanne spoke up, catching the officers attention. Clearly there was something that distressed the two, were there any casualties? If there are wounded, she will offer her aid, as much as she is able to.

Denny looked at Maria, who was just as uncertain if they should relay any information of military conspiracy. "We're... not at liberty to say. Sorry."

Jeanne frowned, that sort of answer could only be if something very crucial was affected during the war. If they have simply said _yes, something has happened_ , it wouldn't have been as suspicious, which means the answer that they did given must be related to the military or the Blue Faction itself, not that she would know if these officers are aware of the later.

She suppose their reactions were understandable. Since turning down the offer to join the military, she is considered a normal citizen in their eyes, so anything that ought to be classified will be withheld from her. She could compel them to tell her with the use of her **Charisma** , but that may not be so wise to do as they would possibly try to stop her, and she wouldn't wish to force the truth out of these kind officers.

She will have to find out for herself then. "Ed, Alphonse," she addresses the Alchemists, "I'll be wandering around the area and see if anything was left behind by the invaders. If you have anymore questions for me, I will answer them the next time we meet."

"...Wait Jeanne."

Jeanne halted at Edward's words, turning around as the boy spoke to the officers. "Do you guys have a paper and something to write with?"

"Uh, I have my notepad and a pen with me." Denny pulls out the items, giving them to Edward. With only one functioning hand that managed to slip into a spare white glove in his pocket, Edward grabbed the pen and wrote on the notepad Denny held for him. He then ripped out the small paper and offered it to Jeanne. She eyed it curiously before taking it, reading the written words.

"That's the address to the hotel we've been staying at. Meet us there in a little while," the Fullmetal Alchemist spared a quick look for the spread out soldiers before he added with a lowered voice, "Don't let anyone know where you're going."

The serious tone in Edward nearly prompted the Holy Maiden to ask him what was wrong, but with this discretion, she kept it to herself and nodded, "Alright. I'll walk around for a little while before going there."

"Good. Make sure that you come alone. Try to be as discreet as you can." He said.

With another nod and a parting word, Jeanne leaves, successfully avoiding the attention of the busy soldiers as she walks down the street.

"Ed?" Maria began, "Why did you invite Jeanne? Did she get to explain what she was doing here?"

"Sort of..." Edward vaguely answered, scratching his head, "But that's not all I want to talk to her about. I'm thinking about telling her what we found out." He surprised not only the officers, but Alphonse as well. "What I found at the lab, it might be related with what happened here..."

 _Are you our Master?_

The fact that those two men who called themselves Servants appeared in that room, the place where the Philosopher's Stones were created, and no later at their arrival, Central City was suddenly invaded by more of these warriors. Edward found it better not to believe in coincidences too much. He could accept surprises either pleasant or annoying, but never coincidences that does not align on purpose. However, as he is still so unfamiliar with the concepts of Servants - let alone outright fully accept it - he has to speak with Jeanne on the subject, which may end up revealing what he and Alphonse discovered.

He knew he should be careful to who he reveals the terrible secret of the Philosopher's Stones to, and there was much about the girl he still doesn't have a full grasp in understanding, but he needed her help in order for him to know, to figure out what kind of conspiracy is hiding among them. Aside from the military's interest in her, she swore that she has no intention in allying with them, thus a safer bet should he tell her everything. How ever far the military has their hand into this crazy war, he has to know if there is some kind of connection between that and the secret project of Philosopher's Stones. Even if there is an unlikeliness to it, he has to make sure.

There may yet be an answer or more clues, hiding in the one place where the matter of the Philosopher's Stones and the matter of the Servants have crossed path.

* * *

"The lab's destroyed?!"

It was wise for the lieutenant and sergeant to take the Elrics and Jeanne somewhere private. After issuing that the Fullmetal Alchemist is alive and accounted for to the other soldiers who would certainly send word of this to their commander, and finding a wrapping support for Edward to carry his broken automail, the brothers and officers returned to the place they have previously been staying these last few weeks.

They avoided Central Command upon word of its hectic condition, finding it better to rest at the hotel as the State Alchemist without his working automail was in no condition to offer any assistance. Reaching the entrance, they found Jeanne in normal outfit waiting there, having just arrived after her quick assessment of the attacked area. Upon entering their dorm and into the living room, Maria and Denny finally confessed what had happened, the destruction of the building where answers would have existed. Edward stood in shock while Jeanne and Alphonse shared a seat on a couch. Though Jeanne was listening, she noticed the body language of the younger brother, appearing to be in deep thought.

"From what we gathered," Maria started, "There was an earthquake that was felt by everyone within the prison. When they were finally able to step outside, they saw the lab completely in ruins."

Edward cursed under his breath, "Dammit! And we were _this_ close to finding out more about the stones!"

There was a distinct slap, startling Jeanne and Alphonse, followed by a pained noise from Edward, "OW! What the hell was that for?!"

"Apologies Fullmetal Alchemist," Maria began professionally, before turning to the other officer. "Sergeant, do the same for Alphonse."

A surprised yell from Alphonse as Denny slapped the younger Elric by the helmet, much to the dismay of his hand. Another startled flinch from Jeanne, she looked on unsure as to what reason was there for the officers actions.

"Now that we have a moment to ourselves, please forgive me for what I'm about to say," Maria explained herself, "You boys have been incredibly selfish. What would have happened to you and Al if we weren't there at the lab? I bet neither of you would have been so lucky if it weren't for those men, especially with what happened after that! You guys can't just go charging into something so dangerous, there's people around you who are willing to help. We're not your enemies Ed, you can't think you can handle everything by yourself."

Jeanne nodded, quietly agreeing. Having heard the gist of what occurred before the invasion - that there was something in this fifth laboratory the brothers just had to investigate for whatever reason, she strongly resonated with Maria's anger that Edward should not have been so careless, especially when it was later confirmed by the Alchemist to have faced with dangerous foes in that lab. He had been just as thoughtless to think he could face Saber of Red, as his luck was not any better with the Lancer they met in East City. Though harsh as it seems, Jeanne is appreciative with the firm lecture of the lieutenant and sergeant, hearing their layer of sincere care for the Elric brothers.

Perhaps it was understandable that these brothers only knew how to rely on each other and no one else, but that must change. If not for their sake, then for the peace of mind of the people who truly wish for the best in the Elrics well-being.

There was a glow of stubbornness that lasted for a few seconds, but after a thought, Edward's eyes softened, a hint of shame. "...You're right." The Fullmetal Alchemist relented as he takes a seat. "I was careless, and got you guys mixed up in something I never would have expected. We really were lucky to survive through all that. I'm sorry for all the trouble I've caused you."

"You... you are?" Maria honestly expected him to refute. "I-I mean, uh, thank you for hearing me out, sir! We sincerely apologize for the insubordination!"

Edward shook his head, "Don't apologize, I deserve that kind of talk."

"Then... our punishment for hitting you and Al?" Denny cautiously asked, fear crept in his face.

"There won't be any. You guys were trying to do your job, all we did was made it harder." He gave their unease one long look, "I'm serious, we won't hold it against you."

"Oh thank God!" Maria shouted her relief as the other officer slumped with the same feeling, "I thought I was going to kiss this job goodbye!"

"Why would you think that?" Edward asked, confused. "Seriously, what's with you guys always on edge around me?"

"You're a State Alchemist," said Maria, as if an answer that explains itself. "State Certificate Alchemists carries an authority equivalent to a Major. Basically, you're our superior."

"Well, you won't have to worry about that. I didn't get my certificate just so I can push people around or get you guys to kiss up, just treat me like you would to anyone else, not as your high-ranking officer." Even for all the conveniences it provides, it was an uncomfortable position for Edward at the thought of abusing it, although Mustang gets a kick out of doing so.

Maria blinked, "Really?... Huh."

"I guess there was no reason to be scared of the brat after all," Denny faintly laughed.

"Hey I'm still here!" He may not appreciate the influence he has, but he would still like some respect at least.

At the exchange in front of her, a warm smile with a hint of laughter from Jeanne, a pleasant change of pace considering the tense situation before. She is glad to know, and to see for herself, that despite the horror of several Servants invading Central, these people have been spared from any serious harm.

"Anyway, there's something else I've been wondering," Maria turns to face the girl, taking her attention. "What were you doing back in Central? And who was that person we saw you fought against?"

Denny agreed, "Yeah, and what was all the get up?" Not that the armor hadn't been useful, he was just surprised to see a girl like Jeanne to have something like that.

Jeanne thought this over, deeply considering. No doubt, these officers have caught more than a glimpse of the battle between great heroes. This would have been an appropriate time to have their memories altered as goes the rules of keeping this war secretive, but is it really worth the effort? It honestly tugged Jeanne's heart to a guilty degree at the thought of having to wipe their memories, she knew what ought to be done, and yet with the military being in the mix of this unstable war, it pushes protocol into becoming more complicated than it should be.

"We've told them about the war."

She looks at Edward, surprised. The Fullmetal Alchemist explained, "Those guys - Archer and Caster, they basically told us what was going on and we end up having to tell the lieutenant and sergeant everything. It's not like we could keep quiet about it during that freakish mess."

The eyes of the Holy Maiden softened, "I see. It couldn't be helped then, it would be asking too much for either you or Alphonse to keep it a secret." It would have been better for them to know, to comprehend the dire situation so to be careful. It was only the right and logical choice.

"Keep what a secret? This thing you guys called the Holy Grail War? Denny asked, stepping closer to Jeanne. "Just what is it? I've never heard the military being part of a war with that name."

There were tensions in the north but nothing that's been declared a war just yet, violence were escalating in the west and south but neither were referenced as the Holy Grail War, even as a code name he has never heard of it. "And what's all this about a Holy Grail?"

With one more look to Edward who was silently encouraging her to speak, Jeanne intakes a deep breath, finalizing her decision. "You should sit down, this might be overwhelming."

The officers went and sat in chairs. They listened closely.

Jeanne intakes a breath, and reveals, "The Holy Grail War is a secret war between seven Masters and their Servants. Two hundred years ago, there was a ritual that created something close to a miracle, a powerful device capable of granting wishes - they called it the Holy Grail..."

She went on explaining the Grail, the people who started and fought in this war of Magecraft and Manifested Legends, the secluded society of the Magi, the time extent for each war until currently, and the winning prize for the remaining pair to survive in the war. Though she was hesitant to reveal the nature of the Servants, she did informed the officers that they were powerful spirits with supernatural and enhanced abilities far greater than even the Alchemy of this world could ever achieve, and that there were now more Masters and Servants than ever recorded in the previous Holy Grail Wars.

"What had just happened to this city was the work of a Servant, followed by several more who have gathered to fight within that storm. The woman you saw me fought against was an enemy Servant. She is of a group known as the Red Faction, whose agenda is to wreck havoc in some parts of Amestris. While their reason for this is unknown, I aim to stop them. I've been chosen as mediator for this war, and my duty is to ensure that there is stability and order in the Holy Grail War. I seek only for its successful progression with little to no casualties from those outside the knowledge of this Grail War, and preside over the battle between Masters and Servants."

The officers held onto every word with a slow blink. Simultaneously, they raised their hands. "...Can you repeat all that one more time?"

It was a reaction all too expected for the Ruler Servant.

"I'm sorry, I mean, all that just sounds so..." Maria searches for a word of the best description, with minimal success. "...Unbelievable."

"A Grail that can grant wishes? A war happening underneath our noses? Mages? Servants?" Denny scratched his head, "All that sounds like one big fantasy novel my little brothers and sisters would love to read about."

"Just wait until you hear about the Servants..." Edward muttered to himself. Jeanne heard, but did not hold it against him. She understood, with what he and Alphonse suffered through long ago.

"Sure, we've seen some incredible stuff, but..." The sergeant leaned forward, "Is that really what's happening? It sounds too crazy to be true."

"The military is actually aware of it," Jeanne surprised the officers. "Your superior Armstrong was also informed of this, at least somewhat. But with the terrorist group they labelled as the Red Faction unknown to them as of yet, and to avoid any tensions from the Mage Society, the military decided to keep this war known only to certain members within their jurisdiction so that they would not frighten away any potential suspect. Whether this includes their government officials, I don't know. But the Fuhrer himself is aware."

The officers gasped. "The Fuhrer?" Denny repeated, "Then... Holy crap. This is _serious_?"

Maria crosses her arms, trying to keep hold of her composure while she is in complete disbelief, "I... I honestly don't know what to say about this..." She looks back up at the girl, "So then... you're not just some ordinary student on a field trip, are you?"

Jeanne shook her head, "No. I'm sorry I've lied to you both, but as the war was originally meant to be known within the group of Magi, it is prohibited to reveal anything about it outside the Mage Society for their own safety."

"And you guys knew about this?" Denny asked the brothers.

A shrug from Edward, "I couldn't believe it when I first heard it but..." He settles his hand over his chest, "I've seen a lot of things I can't deny, even if I wanted to."

The officers shared a perturbed look with one another. "I mean... Good God." Denny uttered, "This is hard to swallow, but then again, I sure can't explain that blizzard. I don't think Alchemy could go _that_ far to make something like that. I mean, I'm no Alchemist but..."

Edward scowled, "The Freezing Alchemist almost got through with whatever his plan was here in Central, but that was as far as an Alchemist could ever achieve. What happened tonight... That was something else, something I can't explain."

"Which means it's safer to say that something _big_ is definitely going on." Just when Maria thought a sinister secret within their own military was the worst thing to discover, now it is not the only one. She returns to Jeanne, "It's... hard to imagine, but I doubt anyone could lie about something like this, especially with what we've seen."

Jeanne nodded, "I know it is difficult to accept it. Even if you would understandably doubt it, I am thankful that you were willing to hear me out."

"Well, you said the Fuhrer himself is involved. No way can we ignore that." Suddenly, Maria's eyes widened in alarm, "Wait a minute! So then, Caster and Archer, were those guys part of the attack? One of them said that they were just like those Servants. Did that mean..."

"They were not part of the Red Faction, I am sure of it." Jeanne said with confidence, turning to Edward who looked down to his concealed hand, "They serve only their Master that's neither a member of the Red Faction, or any of the Masters the military has personally recruited to work as their army."

"There are Masters with the military? You mean we got Servants on our side?!" Denny asked. "Geez! You'd think we would notice if a bunch of powerful, supernatural people were working with us."

Jeanne nodded, "They are most likely in hiding. Keeping a low profile would reduce suspicions of Masters being present within the military, as well do they have to avoid the attention of those who are not aware of the war, even their own soldiers such as yourselves."

She frowns, "But after tonight, the Red Faction would no doubt be fully aware of there being Masters here, although I don't know if they've worked a connection between the Masters that opposes their faction, and the military. Did anything happened before the storm appeared?"

Denny answered, "From what we heard, there were dozens of missiles that tried to take down Central Command."

The Elric brothers gasped at the info, "Was anyone hurt?!"

The sergeant settled their concerns, "Thankfully no. I don't know how, but it sounded like the State Alchemists there managed to build a wall just in time to defend the station. Amazingly, no damage or injuries was reported."

Jeanne contemplated his answer. Upon her rush towards Central, her heart dropped and practically sank into a pit when the first arrow was fired, then a hail of them came afterwards. It rattled her to no end what kind of damage those arrows could have caused. It would have been a relief to hear no casualties and only an area had been heavily destroyed by the first attack, but for there to be no damage at all? From a Servant? Even if a State Alchemist could summon a high wall to defend the station just in time, it would be impossible for any of them to keep the station from being wounded in the face of a barrage of powerful attacks.

There are a few ways the military could have done in order to defend themselves from such devastating attacks, and that would be to have a Servant on their side. It is definitely possible that a Servant would have an ability to protect the station from any sort of damage from another Servant. But if that is what happened, and the Red Faction saw that, then the Red Faction would know that there is a Master among the military.

If so, with the Blue Faction's hidden card of their secret alliance now revealed, how will either side go about this? Would the Red Faction proceed more carefully? Will the Masters of Red attempt to leave the country? For that last thought, while it would be a soothing idea so that no more villages would be destroyed, Jeanne knew it couldn't be that simple. For this faction to murder so freely, they have a purpose, their actions are for _something_ than it was for the simple sake of it. They would not be easily swayed to leave. But why? What are they trying to accomplish?

"You said that Archer and Caster worked with a Master who aren't associated with this Red Faction or the military?" Maria questioned.

"Yes," Jeanne answered, "There are Masters in Amestris who are fighting for the Holy Grail independently, a few of them I met in my travels."

Maria hummed in curiosity, "Then do you know who Archer's and Caster's Masters are?"

The Elric brothers flinched, Edward looked away uncomfortably. "Uh..." The oldest brother began.

Jeanne observed their behavior, more towards Edward, and considered shortly before giving her answer, "...They would rather not let themselves be known."

They all looked at her, the officers were confused while the brothers were surprised. The Holy Maiden explained, "Mages are very protective of their identities and culture. Even though there is Alchemy in Amestris, the Mages do not see it as an encouragement to reveal the abilities they have, they preferred to keep themselves unknown to the rest of the world, along with their practices." There is certainly a version of Alchemy with the Mages of this world, but from her brief conversation with a few, they spoke their explicit belief of how much their alchemy and the Alchemy of "Not-Mages" differ.

"As Ruler, I must respect the privacy of the Masters and not speak openly of their names or their Servant's identity carelessly."

To Jeanne, revealing that Edward is a Master - someone who remains adamant in keeping himself out of the war, could not only endanger him, but as Ruler, to reveal such vital information of a Master's identity who made no offense would be as if she would reveal the Elric's secrets of their committed taboo, and she will keep that secret locked in her heart until the brothers find it best to reveal it themselves.

Just as the officers were about to impose, Jeanne shook her head. "I'm sorry, but I can't give you that much information. Not only to keep this competition fair, but for their own protection as well," she emphasized. "If it's any consolation, they do not mean any harm, and if they find it best, they will come to you on their own terms."

Edward looked at her, conflicted emotions in his eyes as he then averts his gaze to his hand. Nothing was said by either him or Alphonse. Whatever their reason for their silence, Jeanne will respect it, though there was curiosity as to why they would want to keep quiet. Perhaps the brothers were still in shock at the Servants arrival? Or perhaps it would have been unnecessary, as Edward would want to rid his Seals anyway.

It was then that Jeanne realized, if Edward were to relinquish his seals to Father Kotonelm, and Kotonelm is allied with the military, then those two Servants would be transferred to serve the Blue Faction. At this very truth, she felt discomfort. There was still distrust she has for the Overseer and the Fuhrer himself, the idea to give them more firepower was something Jeanne found very concerning. They may have their spoken agenda to keep the war from endangering Amestris, and yet Jeanne was not at ease. She is unsettled even now, sitting here among friends, not because they work for the military, but because where she is currently.

Though the danger has passed, something in this city still disturbs her. She felt this the first time she visited Central, and though the presence was there, it was faint while her senses tugged at her incessantly of another threat, a threat _not just_ to the Holy Grail War. Was it the Red Faction? Something else?

She finds even her own senses and privileges as Ruler to be questionable. Possessing the body of another girl would ultimately have an effect on Jeanne's power, but not enough that should hinder her duty. It seems to be worse than she imagined. Since day one, Jeanne has been wandering across the country as a dog would to chase its own tail. Everywhere was shouting at her, _the danger is here, the danger is there,_ but she cannot see it clearly. There are enemies somewhere, but her **Revelation** was all over the place that she can't pinpoint who to confront, who to trust, and what she could do about it.

Even as Ruler, a powerful class, she is still one Servant against a sea of problems across this massive land. She finds herself unable to focus on the issue because she still has to mediate the war that was happening in all directions. Truly, though she is a girl who should know what path to take and where to go, she is walking completely blind in this foreign world.

The officers struggled with her firm refusal until at last they relented, albeit hesitantly. "Well, as long as they won't cause any trouble, and we do owe them our thanks for keeping all of you safe."

Jeanne agreed with Maria. "Now then," she turned her head for Edward, "You've invited me here for a reason. It was something important?"

Edward delves in deep thought on the subject as he stared the floor. "I told you about how we were at the lab looking for something. Me and Al were able to decipher Marcoh's notes, and what we found out..."

His hand shook, "...The secret ingredient in creating Philosopher's Stones. The reason why it has the ability to bypass Alchemy was because it uses a key element... that key element is the life-force of a human soul. To make a Philosopher's Stone, you have to sacrifice human life."

Edward looked at her face and found... an odd sight. Jeanne's expression looked downcast, not twisted in shock as the brothers have when they finally unearthed the true writings of Tim Marcoh's research. While not a completely unlikely response, he thought he would get much more of a reaction.

"...I know."

Her unexpected answer had Edward and Alphonse recoiled. "You...know?" The older Elric uttered, "You knew what the Philosopher's Stones were made out of? How did you... _When_ did you know?"

It was finally time. With a deep breath, Jeanne confessed, "Since our visit from Marcoh. I knew there was something wrong with that unfinished stone, and when I inspected it closely, I realized what that wrongness was."

A stare of disbelief from all around her. Edward shot up from his seat, the heat of his emotion rising in his voice, "You knew... You _knew_ this whole time?! Why didn't you say anything?!"

"Would you have believed me? Marcoh and I knew the horrors of this truth, too horrible that he couldn't speak about it and I..." Jeanne's gaze wavered, but she marched on with her words, "I didn't have the heart to tell you. This one thing you and Alphonse have been searching for all your life. How could I be the one to break it to you? Much less that you would even consider it if I have told you without proof. I could have shown you the stone and explained, but the moment I realized what it was, I couldn't wait and let those souls be trapped any longer, so I destroyed it, and allowed the souls to move on to the afterlife."

The anger in Edward was kept at bay as he listens to her sincere words, to hear her destroying the stone, and her expression of guilt that weighed for as long as she had kept this knowledge to herself. The girl resumes, "I decided then that you and Al deserved a brief period of peace before the both of you were to find out yourselves. It wasn't right at all, and I deserve both of your anger. Even if you wouldn't have believed me, that does not make my silence justifiable, and I am sorry."

She held back her tears, her grief for the brothers and the truth they now know, her sorrow for the nightmare that will continue to haunt them in their current forms. "I am _so_ sorry, that this is what you had to find on your own. That this...is what it is."

She desperately tried to keep her head up, even if what awaits her was outrage. She has dealt with much worse in her life, as she approached her execution with stones carrying the people's curses of damnation thrown her way. She had been strong then, so she will brace this one as well, even if it will indeed hurt as they come from the people she sees as friends.

 _Now, we want to get our bodies back. No matter how long it takes. All we can do is keep moving._

Rose knew this pain, Jeanne understood. The girl from Liore, who has a better understanding of the brothers' soul-crushing discovery, that a chance for something to return, that the desirable expectation was all for naught but a terrible reveal. It must have been so when the brothers thought they would see their mother again, just as it was when they thought they could regain their bodies and limbs, but at a terrible cost.

The sadness she has for them, meshed with Rose's sorrow. Ultimately, she failed to keep her head up any longer, and her tears fell in honor of the Elric brothers, and the girl from Liore with also a tragic past. A choked voice, Jeanne's heart goes out for these friends and their painful experiences.

"I am so sorry..." She cupped her face as she wept for their tragedy. "I am so sorry..."

Any lingering anger Edward would have kept, vanished the moment he saw Jeanne in tears. He was aghast that she had known for this long, but he never expected her to cry, he would never wish for that from anyone. Maria reaches out and comforted the Holy Maiden. Startled as she was of Jeanne's confession, the officer did not prevent herself from rubbing the girl's shoulders as the woman held her closely.

"Jeanne..." Alphonse said quietly. Though stunned, even a sense of betrayal, he instinctively wanted to hug her as she cried, but the blonde girl shook her head. Gently, she grasped Maria's hand and returned them to the lieutenant once the Holy Maiden reclaimed control of her emotion, clearing away the tears as she ceased their fall with her fingers. It should be the brothers who ought to be comforted, she thought, not her.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to break down like that, I just..." She prayed to God for strength, "I know it is far worse for you. I truly wished it hadn't been like this. I know how much this means to you and Alphonse, I would never dare push you away from the path you chose. At the time, after I found out, I didn't know what to do. What would have been right or if it would have made everything worse for you. I wanted to tell you, I really did."

Another release of her breath, "But that doesn't matter now. You now know, that this research is something no one should ever look into any further. It is a work against humanity."

Edward remained standing, mulling over her words. While he wishes that Jeanne could have told him and Alphonse, he actually agreed with her point. If she had told what she knew before they looked at Marcoh's notes, without proof but inserted the idea that it was a possibility, it would have caused him to either back Marcoh into a corner and make the old man confirm this or he would have trouble believing her, just as she said.

What frightens him though was that if he had been told the secret of the Philosopher's Stones, he would not simply believe, it would actually _make sense_. But even then, he would have still gone through the process of unraveling Marcoh's notes regardless of Jeanne's truth, just to prove her wrong or somehow prove that it couldn't be just _that._

Jeanne was right to think that he wouldn't believe her by word alone, he had to see it for himself, just as it did with this crazy secret war this girl is part of. It was a habit of his, a difficulty to accept something so ridiculous until it screamed at his face; a few instances of surreal events and what happened this night. Her reason was founded.

He was not happy, but he could not blame Jeanne. He couldn't, not while she was in tears. The Fullmetal Alchemist rubbed the back of his neck, "I'm not fine with it, but it's not like it would have been any easier if you told us beforehand."

He paused, "You said you... purged the stone?"

Jeanne nodded, steadying her tone, "There was no way to save those people, only to free them from their captivity and suffering."

Nauseated at the fact that a person could be in that state, Edward's scowl was both bitter and sad, "Them... So there were more than one soul that made the Philosopher's Stone."

Jeanne shared his mortified expression, "Yes. The stone that I purged at Marcoh's home, there wasn't just one or even a few souls that were in that liquefied state."

It was so inhumane even for the standards of a Magus, and the Magus are known to cross barriers where morality does not apply. Jeanne does not think, however, that it would be above a Magus' work, as there are cruel people out there, but this was the work of an Alchemist, someone who must have known the properties of a human soul if they even dared to perform these wicked experiments and entrapping all those poor victims.

"I didn't count how many there were exactly, but from how it felt, there must have been at least ten souls." _Ten human souls_ , to be that tiny blob of red in that little jar. It was unfathomable, even as it was held in her hand.

The Elrics and the officers were aghast. Edward gritted his teeth, "Dammit. So it takes a bunch of souls to build the stone... one soul for every use maybe?" Disgust clenched his gut, the fact that this is how far the Alchemy he loves could reach. Scar's views of the practice may have been somewhat justified, even if to exclude the man's already horrified experience in the Ishvalan War - though nothing could ever justify his murders.

There was a moment of pondering before Edward mentions, "When I managed to get inside the fifth laboratory, there was this room. It was filled with transmutation circles, the guards I met there and fought with told me that that was the place used to create Philosopher's Stones."

He added, "This woman and some other guy showed up. I don't know who or what the hell they were." That woman used a power so unlike that of a human, and the other guy was just as abnormal, a face twisted with evil glee. Were they Servants also? At this point, he might as well consider every possibility. "They killed the guard and his brother just as they were about to tell me everything. And then..."

"What happened next?" Maria encouraged him to continue.

Edward frowned as he remembered the next event, something that even Jeanne admits having no idea how it happened, "...I tried using Alchemy. There was this flash of light, and out of nowhere, Archer and Caster appeared. They called themselves Servants. They were really powerful, Jeanne told me that they were warriors who came to fight in this war. The only thing is, why did they show up in that room?"

He looked at the girl with a question, "Jeanne, if these guys are... what you said they are..." It really is difficult to say it outright. "And for Archer and Caster to just show up in that room, is it possible that with a Philosopher's Stone - using human lives, that they built up these Servants?"

He had his previous theory that the Servants were formed from the data received through the Gates of Truth, but if this is also a possibility, then he has to ask to make sure. Maybe it would have been a second part in activating that _not_ -Human Transmutation circle. It was a place where the Philosopher's Stones were created after all. Maybe through the Gates of Truth, it gives the information, while a human soul constructs the body, or something to it.

He would have honestly accepted an artificial creation better than what these Servants are. It's simply insane.

Jeanne frowned, her confusion clear, "Are you asking if the Servants are made from Philosopher's Stones-?"

It was as if she was slapped. What Edward is asking, based from his stubborn disbelief that these Servants could not actually be famous heroes of her world's history and legends, is if the Servants are created from living human souls or a soul.

If Jeanne were to answer this, she would admit that a Master would likely use a human sacrifice as their catalyst, though such practice is more than likely to summon a chaotically evil spirit than it would to bring forth a Servant of good or lawful-align of a spirit with no malicious intent, but it does not in itself form the Servant, only called them to the world of the living. However, the topic of souls and Heroic Spirits, and the room to which Edward has said where Archer and Caster arrived within, the very room where humans are used to become Philosopher's Stones...

 _Lord Almighty, what if..._

A terrible idea, or perhaps a cold conclusion. If a Master was unable to provide their Servant with enough mana, the Master may resort to other means, one possible way would be if they were to have an energy filled mechanism that will provide the Servants and spare the Master's from spending their own energy resource. Another way to provide for their Servant is far more damning in terms of ethics; a human soul is considered equivalent to plentiful amounts of mana, and as Servants are indeed spirits, they are capable of consuming that mana, capable of _consuming human souls_ , though the process will have to be continuous and it is only if the Master is truly an inept Magus. They would either have the Servant's consent, or force them to consume human souls via Command Spell. Even if it is not needed, it would boost the power of their Servants considerably.

What has been done in the Fifth Laboratory - that lab of government property, if that room is not simply a matter of a separate group of rogue scientists and that there is a legitimate connection to the military in its entirety, then was it possible that the military, the Masters and the Servants with them...

 _Have the Blue Faction been providing their Servants with Philosopher's Stones?_

"Jeanne?" Edward waved his hand at her, trying to gain her attention. "Jeanne! What is it?"

 _The danger is here..._

Jeanne's abrupt rise from her seat startled the people around her. A fire in her aquamarine eyes, a contained fury so unnerving, Edward would honestly fret to be under such a gaze, or have pity to whoever enticed this heated glare.

"I need to speak with Bradley."

The Fullmetal Alchemist processed the words of Jeanne with a blink, "Wait, what?"

Just as he comprehended, the Holy Maiden was already walking for the door.

"Whoa whoa whoa! Wait a second!" Edward was the first to react before the others. He bolted out of his chair before the others, his hand out to stop Jeanne. "You want to talk with Bradley?! What the hell for-"

He grabbed her arm, but with no hope to challenge the strength of a Servant, much less a fearless girl on a mission to interrogate the Fuhrer, Jeanne did not budge, and incidentally dragged the surprised Fullmetal Alchemist along until he tripped and face-planted onto the floor.

"Ed!" The others shouted at his descent. It was enough to stop Jeanne and out of her determined state of mind. She looked aside to see what was done, "Oh my goodness, Ed! Are you alright?!"

The others gathered as Jeanne helped Edward lift himself from the ground, he muffled through his hand that held to his pained face, "Lieutenant Ross is right. You're really strong..."

Of course, he always figured. He just hadn't considered how strong she was.

In agitation, Jeanne patted away the floor dust from the Alchemist's clothing, incessantly apologizing for her lack of awareness. Edward waved the apology away and returned to the main focus, "Why do you want to talk with the Fuhrer?"

The girl halted, her brows furrowed, "It's what you said, it made me wonder if your Fuhrer might know something about this." Or rather, what she knew he's been hiding this entire time, and that it was only until now that her suspicions are about to be settled.

"Were you planning to tell him what we talked about?!" Edward shouted. "You can't just march into the station, waltz right into his office and demand answers from him! We have no idea how deep this goes! You could end up saying something and whoever's responsible for that lab will try to get as far away from us before we could catch them!"

"I cannot stand aside while this is what's been happening," Jeanne stated. "You asked if the Servants are built upon the souls of living humans, it's nothing like that, however..." She grimaced. "However... If a Master cannot offer their Servant a proper mana supply, they may resort to allowing or forcing their Servants in eating human souls to gain power."

It was as much of a gawking revelation as it was with the Philosopher's Stone. "Eating souls? These Servants really aren't that human?" Denny asked, horrified.

"Not all Servants would condone the act," Jeanne said. "But it is likely that their Master will force them to. However, that's not the main issue in this case. If the Blue Faction - the group of Masters and the military, have a connection to what's been done in that lab, then there's a chance that..."

"...That they're giving the Servants on their side Philosopher's Stones," Edward finished, dawned with understanding. His eyes hardened, "Still, you can't just confront anybody about this, you shouldn't be reckless Jeanne!"

Says the boy who is more than willing to charge into anything even if it were highly dangerous. The officers coughed, while Alphonse decidedly withheld any comment to that.

"...Oh shut it!" Edward yelled at the people behind him whom he could feel their judgment on him.

Denny and Maria waved their hands, "We didn't say anything at all."

Edward mumbled in irritation and his self-admitted hypocrisy. It's one matter he does something careless, but it's a different matter if he sees someone else being just as thoughtless.

Jeanne argues, "I can't just do nothing-"

Edward cuts in, "We won't be doing nothing, we just got to be smart about this," he then thought for a brief moment, "And if the military is really supplying the Servants on their side with the Philosopher's Stones, then do you think they'll just roll over and listen to you? Do you really think you can handle fighting all of them at once by yourself?"

She was close to saying that it shouldn't matter, not with the idea of horrible experiments that uses human lives to fuel their army of Servants. There are limitations to how anyone should proceed the Holy Grail War, but this, this is a crime not just to the war. A crime to humanity and a crime to God. It did not matter to her if she were to end up fighting alone, she will not allow such vile actions to continue.

And yet he's right, she is just one Servant, even as the Ruler Servant, it is obvious that there are multiple Heroic Spirits serving the Blue Faction. And if then that their Masters, should they actually be aware of the Philosopher's Stones nature, yet would still decide to go against her, she would be overwhelmed to the point where she will end up using the two Command Seals against the Servants of Blue. And if she fails, what then? What will happen to the victims who have become pebbles of energy or would be victims waiting to be sacrificed, who will save them?

Who will then help the Elric brothers and Edward's situation? Would she end up endangering them and the officers if she were to confront the Fuhrer about this?

Though it remains apparent, the passion in her subsides and she visibly concedes to the State Alchemist's point. The creation of Philosopher's Stones, terrible as it was, she will not risk the safety of these people. So long as she can help it, if she cannot outright end it at the main source, she will prevent anymore people from becoming the next victim.

"Believe me, I want answers just as badly," Edward asserts, "But we have to be careful about this, especially if it's as dangerous as we think it is."

"Edward is right," Maria said. "Let's not get ahead of ourselves. We have to figure everything out first, it might not even be someone in the military who's responsible for this. We should at least let Major Armstrong be in the know." She cupped her chin, "But now with the lab destroyed, we're left with no evidence of what went on in there, and no clues as to what other plans the people responsible might have next."

She looked at the clock on the wall, "It's getting really late now. Why don't we all head to bed and talk more about this in the morning?"

The mention of sleep brought a sense of drowsiness in Edward. The night calmed once more and the rush of the intense battle fading, a nice bed sounds very appealing to the Fullmetal Alchemist. "Yeah, you're right. We should get some sleep."

"If you'd like, Jeanne, we can register another room for you here at the hotel," Maria offered.

"Oh, that's very kind of you. If it's not too much trouble," Jeanne reached for her side, but paused.

"You don't have to pay," Maria assured her once she saw the girl's actions. "We'll cover the charge, you guys deserve a good night rest after getting through this crazy night."

"Well, actually..." Jeanne said, "I was reaching for my wallet, but I just realized that I left my bag in a field outside of Central. I completely abandoned it after I saw the city was about to be attacked."

"We'll have someone go look for it," Maria glances at Denny, who nodded.

"Right, leave it to me. Though I could use some help on where it is."

Grateful for his offered efforts, Jeanne asked for a map so to mark the destination of her bag. "I'll go to the lobby and get a room for you," informed Maria before turning to the Elrics. "In the meantime, if it's alright that she stays here."

Edward did not mind it and went back to his chair, "It's alright." He may still be angry at the withheld knowledge Jeanne had for the Philosopher's Stone, but he was not so immature as to let her wait outside this room.

Besides, this way he'll have a moment to talk with Jeanne more freely, specifically about the men who came in the midst of that light within the room of transmutation circles; Archer and Caster. To explain the officers exactly everything that unraveled in that room, he didn't have enough energy for that. He trusted the officers, enough to let them in on the secrets he and Alphonse uncovered, but he needed to first understand what it was that happened in that room.

The officers then left. After a few seconds when Edward is sure the lieutenant and sergeant walked far enough, he spoke to Jeanne who also returned to her seat. "Hey, about Archer and Caster..."

She knew where he was going with this, "I still don't have an explanation. It isn't impossible for someone to accidentally perform a summoning. If you were in a stressful situation, a Servant would respond in order to defend you. Normally, you would have to be a Magus, but with this war, it seems anyone can be a candidate."

"But why the hell do I have these marks again?" Edward lifted his gloved hand where the seals hid behind, "I thought I would be out of this war if I gave these things to that creep of a priest."

"I thought so too," said Jeanne, excluding the comment of the priest, though he's not wrong. "My only guess, the Holy Grail is determined to have you in the war. Most likely because it knows that there is a wish you want to reach."

Getting their bodies back. Edward frowned bitterly. "I'm really not liking this Grail. How does a freaking cup know what I want anyhow?"

Jeanne was just as confused, while she can understand that the Grail, in its condition, would reach out to those with a powerful desire or will, in the case of Edward who may have his wish but no desire to fight in the war, she worries if he could even stay out of it, or if the Grail will only persist.

"What I can't figure out is how you were able to accidentally summon two Servants," she looked aside, thoughtful. "Not even a regular Magus could achieve that."

Alphonse's leaned his armor body forth, finally speaking after a long, unusual silence, "What if we ask Archer and Caster? Wouldn't they know something?"

A good question. "That is worth a try," Jeanne agreed to the idea.

Edward sighed, "It's too bad we can't. They were right behind us, but then we turned around and they were suddenly gone! How does anyone just disappear like that?"

The Holy Maiden bit her lip pensively, "They've disappeared, yes. But you see, Archer and Caster... They never left."

The brothers stared at her in puzzlement "...Huh?"

 _It's better to let them see for themselves._ With an even gaze, Jeanne looked towards the chairs where Maria and Denny once sat in. "Your Master has called for you. Reveal yourselves now."

"What? Jeanne what are you-"

"Very well." A familiar proud voice interrupts Edward. There was abrupt confusion, then a surprised yell when a mist of dazzling gold envelops the seats, and the Servants came into existence. Archer appeared with one leg over the other, his hands resting upon his waist without his elementally powerful gauntlet, and seated with a relaxed posture, bearing much confidence as before. At his left was Caster, materializing with his hands clasped together, his gray-blue hair like silk drapes on each side of his face, further softening his already eased expression that once more greeted the teenagers.

"What the f-?!" Edward stumbled back, knocking down his chair. Alphonse rose from the couch, gawking at the unreal arrival of these men.

"Feel free to gawk. I'm not unfamiliar with amazed stares," Archer encouraged.

"Good evening to all of you. I'm happy to see you are well," Caster smiled.

"Where did you-?! How did you-?!" Edward's mind jumbled until settling with one coherent question. "What the hell are you guys?!"

"As we have mentioned before, we are your Servants," Archer answered. "I understand though that you have some trouble believing what we are exactly."

"You were listening?!" Edward demanded from them. "How... how much have you heard?"

"Plenty, but I noted two," Archer raises a finger for each topic he paid curious attention to, "The Philosopher Stones, certainly quite different from that of our world, and your apparent lack of complete understanding to the Holy Grail War. More accurately, your disbelief. I have figured that you were unfamiliar with your position, beside someone who can manipulate matter, but has never known Magus Training."

"I must say, it's harrowing to hear about these stones," Caster's face dampens, evidently not pleased. "So unfortunate that anyone would cross that. So unnecessarily excessive..."

"It's repulsive," Archer said, his dark blue brows furrowed with contempt. "If I had known that room we were summoned in was a place where such experiments were conducted, I would have destroyed that entire building with a snap of my fingers. Though the evidence of such a distasteful place would be lost, as it already has from what the lady lieutenant Ross has informed, and those who worked at that lab will simply find another place to continue their work."

Even so, it was a distasteful revelation. He would destroy that place regardless the futility of it. Edward paid no mind to Archer's opinion, he reeled internally in shock to what Archer has previously responded.

 _They know almost everything we talked about._ This was far from an unwanted situation. What if someone else had heard? No, more importantly, how trust worthy are these men? He remembered Jeanne and turned to scowl at her, "You knew they were here all along?"

"I was worried how Maria and Denny would react if I had said something," Jeanne explained. Though Archer and Caster would never be harmed by the officers even if they attempt to, it might cause too much commotion in the hotel, depending on how the officers would react to them. "And you refrained from telling the officers about your Seals. To mention that Archer and Caster were actually here would lead me to explain why; because they are bounded to you by those Seals."

Edward shot a heated glare at his concealed backhand. Always with the Seals, giving him more trouble than he already disliked having because of it. "What is it with these Seals that makes you guys connected to me?"

"They are our anchors to this world. Should they vanish, then so shall we," Archer explains. "They also have a powerful hold to our actions, so should you need to make an order for us to follow at an instant, it shall be done at the cost of one of the three spells those symbols represents. Every use, and a Seal disappears. If you are so concerned that we have overheard your discussion and distrust us, then those spells on your hand should give you some peace of mind, ordering our silence should you find it appropriate."

It aligns with the explanation Jeanne had given while they were in Resembool, the power these Seals have over the Servants. To control the will and actions of the Servants. Edward grimaced. What a horrible thing to possess, no one should have the right to force the will of anyone. This Holy Grail War truly is for the demented.

"I-I've never seen anything like that..." Alphonse conveyed his amazement, wrapping his mind around the spiritual re-introduction of these men. "To just show up the way you guys did, like you reconstructed your body by will! You... you guys are really something else, huh?"

"Not human, you mean?" Archer stated bluntly. "No, I suppose we're not entirely that, but the versions of ourselves when we were alive, they were very much human. It is through our achievements, our impact in history, that we are granted gifts that only expand our already earned power and ability once we've became Servants."

Edward eyed the men with caution, "So... you're saying you guys are actually reincarnated?"

"In a sense, but not with our original bodies," Archer said, not failing to hear the skeptic in the boy's tone. "If you're referring to us being the result of Human Transmutation, you could instead see us as the outcome of a ritual duplicating that practice, but with different ingredients and process, thus forming an alternative product."

"How'd you figure that?" Edward questioned.

"It's information we've received when we came to this world," Caster tells. "When obtaining the general knowledge of the Alchemy in this country, how _fascinatingly_ prominent it is here in this world, we were given some info about Human Transmutation, a forbidden practice in your country. Though a summoning of a Servant and Human Transmutation are similar, the difference is that we are a reflection of our real souls, a copy of the individuals we once lived as."

Edward clenched his hand. To see the ghostly arrival of Archer and Caster, he was relieved and disturbed to know that he had not been crazy when he saw the blue Lancer perform something similar, nor was he alone to witness. He cannot deny what was right in front of him. At the very least, he is able to confirm; _these Servants are very much not normal humans_.

"Okay, let's just say I'll take your word for it," for now. He could argue and challenge, but there was hardly any energy left to keep the Fullmetal Alchemist awake, "Why did you show up in that room we met?"

"I heard your voice," was Archer's answer. He elaborated once he saw Edward's perplexed face, "It had been faint, but I heard your stubbornness and felt your emotion, your will to fight. I found myself intrigued, an interest to see your survival and how far you will go."

 _What am I, a show for him?_ Edward decided he disliked like this pompous man.

"I've also heard you," Caster gained the State Alchemist's attention. "And that you were in obvious need of assistance. I was more than willing to answer your call regardless if they were intentional or not, and help however I could at the moment. But as I tried to respond, I found myself stuck."

"Stuck?" Jeanne repeated.

"Yes. I've confronted the same issue," Archer tells. "I was unable to go beyond the Gate of my world. It was only until a moment later that this peculiar static surrounded the doors. In an instant, I was pushed through like riding a ruthless current, and forced into the next Gate across the Void."

"Gate? You mean the Gates of Truth?" Edward asked, appalled. The quiet gasp of Alphonse echoed in his armor, he listens intently.

"If that is what it was called," It was not a name Archer familiarizes with, but he shall make note of it. "There was an interesting figure in the Void but I haven't had the pleasure to converse it - if I could anyhow - before I arrived in that room."

The mention of the figure at the Gate, there was only one Edward could think of. That relentless, sadistic being; Truth. Edward had hoped to forget such a creature ever existed, but the moment Archer said to have seen this figure, a shudder and built-up anger crawls throughout Edward's entire being. His memory may have faded with time, but he could never forget the horrible experience, or the smile of that white figure surrounded in shadow.

"I've endured something similar," Caster tells. "After I was able to enter to this world, I realized I was not the only Servant in that room. During the summoning, I was immediately informed that we were not meant to engage battle towards one another."

"We understood quickly what had happened," Archer joined. "We've been summoned through a circle that was designed to bring forth more than one Servant, and ended up with the same Master."

"So that's how..." Jeanne said quietly. If the circle in that room was intended to bring forth more than one Servant, then that explains how Edward was able to obtain two Servants. As for being "stuck," she does not know what that could mean, or how they were able to push through.

She knew what Gates they mentioned as well. When coming to this world, Jeanne recalls entering the Void and meeting with that strange shrouded white figure, but aside having to possess a body, there were no other problems. "Edward, when you were defending yourself against this woman and her associate, what exactly were you doing while in front of the Summoning Circle?"

"I tried to use Alchemy to fight off those monsters," Edward answered, "But the reaction got pulled into the circle instead. It went crazy, and I've already told you the rest..."

Then that must be it. It could be that because Edward was not a Magus, the summoning circle - designed to summon multiple Servants at once - struggled to offer the Alchemist more than one Servant. It was only when Edward used his Alchemy that the circle was forced to release the Servants, and so came the two Heroic Spirits. That seems to be the only best explanation for this, although she still has her questions.

"It's quite remarkable for you to summon two Servants," Caster compliments before his face loosens to a neutral expression, "However, it isn't a recommendable amount for any Master to have. At worse, a Master would already suffer a great drain for supporting more than one Servant."

"What? You're saying I could get sick?" Just when Edward had thought it could not get any worse for him.

"You are not a Magus," Caster pointed out. "A gifted Magus would be well enough to support perhaps up to a limited amount of Servants, I would say three at most. Just for that amount, you would have to be a rare powerful Magus with an incredible supply of Prana coursing through your body, while still be able to function just fine."

"What do you mean by that?" Edward asked warily, treading on what feels to be a concerning subject.

Caster ponders, his finger and a thumb grabbing his own chin, "Well, if a Servant so happens to be incredibly powerful, and a Master cannot provide an upkeep of supplying Mana, the Servant will continue to drain whatever energy their Master does have. Their life force more precisely, which cannot be controlled."

He spoke his thoughts openly, as if professing medical knowledge of the ill, "Symptoms of being unable to provide your Servant with the required amount of Mana will lead to severe exhaustion and malnutrition, among many other side-effects. Your brain could also potentially shut down. Worst case scenario you would be left paralyzed because the Servant would drain your energy to move. Oh, well actually, the worst case scenario would be to completely drain your life, which will result in dea-"

"T-that's enough Caster!" Jeanne silenced the Servant too late as she saw Edward and Alphonse grew more and more distraught with every detail of the horrifying, slow torture of the older Elric's inevitable demise.

The Fullmetal Alchemist shouted to the ceiling, "What the hell did I do to God to deserve this?!"

"I see that you are a man who speaks too much," Archer said to Caster, a hint of amusement.

The Caster casually responded, "I've been told as such in life actually, which is the reason why I wasn't exactly well-approved..." He then realized himself, "Oh, I see what I've done. Forgive me young man, I was rambling without considering your feelings on the matter. But don't worry, in your case, you should be alright."

"How would I be alright after everything you just said?!" If such a fate awaits for Edward, then may he hope to use his last strength to punch the doctor in his face free of worries.

"Mainly because of me, boy," Archer spoke. "The Archer Class Servants are known to proceed the duration of the war without much needed mana supply from their Master. In other words, my existence will not starve you."

"Casters do not have that skill," Caster explains. "However, we don't particularly need as much Mana from our Masters. Being Casters, we know how to produce our own mana, which will require setting up our workshop first. As long as there is a way, we are capable to provide for ourselves. But just to be certain, do you feel strange as of now?"

Edward shuffled, not quite completely calmed as of yet, "I'm drowsy, but it's late and a lot happened tonight."

"That's understandable. Should you remain to feel that way, or noticed anything odd since right after the summoning, please inform me at once." For now, he shall have to observe his Master's health closely.

No matter the assurance, an unsettling feeling remained in Edward. He paces across the room. "If there's anything wrong with me it might as well be my sanity. This whole night has been nothing but going off the rails. Something weird is going on around here, this stupid tattoo is back," he lifted his gloved hand. "Winter came early and left all under an hour, only to find out that whole thing and those monsters made out of rocks and bones weren't _real_ in the first place, more of those super humans, and here are you people convinced that you're ghosts from another planet!"

Having to describe everything that was witnessed, Edward wishes he could say his start of a new month were as extraordinary. Unfortunately, it was never to this laughable extent, he might as well believe himself to be out of his mind.

"A magnificent universe we are in," Archer broadly proclaimed. "An endless possibility, no matter how unlikely. Can you honestly say an existence like ourselves, what we are and where we are from, are not so plausible that Alchemists like yourselves do not dare to see if they may replicate it?"

Edward bit down an angered growl at the man's prod to the mission of Alchemists, "I know well enough to believe that you guys aren't normal, but I have better reasons to understand why. Alchemists are always trying for a revolutionary discovery, but there's a final point to their research. It either goes too far where it's plain obvious that what they're trying to prove won't work, or its unethical."

Even if it was remotely similar to Human Transmutation, the end result should still be impossible. Or so he continues to stubbornly insist.

"Not necessarily."

Caster countered, earning everyone's attention. "The outcome that's said to be impossible is enough encouragement to drive Alchemists into reaching that point, and wherever they may be led afterwards, it is an exciting wonder that further inspires an Alchemist to continuously seek after it."

"You're an Alchemist?" Alphonse had overheard this fact previously, but was only unsure because the sort of ability this man casted was unlike any Alchemy he has studied upon.

Caster confirmed with a nod, "It is true that people will know no bounds, it is also a definite proof of their tenacity. Faced against a wall, you're left with plenty of options, it only takes a person of continuous curiosity or a relentless ambition to seek a way around that obstacle. Whether by crude means or a purpose to help others, Alchemy itself knows no bounds. It is as Archer says, this a wonderful realm we are most fortunate to live within. If a miraculous existence like ourselves is possible, what else is possible? That is the main question Alchemists like us strive to unravel."

Edward huffed humorlessly, "Sure enough." He did not disagree. "And yet, whenever we get so close to the truth, we pay the price for it. It's basically what I just said, we go too far that we're prevented from going any further, and all we got out of it is punishment for bothering to try in the first place."

The Servants simultaneously gazes upon his mechanical limb, Jeanne and Alphonse were the only ones in this room to understand. Yet for the Servants of the Fullmetal Alchemist who knew nothing of Edward, as keen observers, there was an awareness of what may be their Master's own personal experience.

Caster's inquiry continues to grow, true to his own word as an Alchemists who desired to know more, yet also a human who seeks to better understand another human. Archer's eyes glimmered with intellectual interest, observing the boy with a calculative glare before he blinked it away, "If that is where you stand, we will not force you to move. But regardless, there is no denying the significance of those Seals you hold. I gathered that you had no intention of participating the war, correct? Not the least bit curious of the Grail, or do you doubt its capability just as much?"

"I wouldn't care if it really could grant wishes, I'm not killing anybody for it." That is a line Edward will never cross, no matter if he were up against a killer, or if it were in self-defense, he will never take the life of someone. A human life is irreplaceable, and no matter how the world is and his position as a soldier, even if it were a command from his superior officers, he will refuse to kill a living being of emotions, thoughts, and will.

An elated grin from Caster to hear Edward's unwavering statement. "I see. If that is how you feel, if you truly don't wish to have any part in this war-"

"And yet the Grail is rather keen to have you," Archer reminded. "Simply relenting your Seals may not be enough."

Jeanne thought similarly. She knew better than to deny the will of the Grail as its Ruler Servant, but Edward is clearly not a person who would be willing to take the life of the other competitors, she doubt he would do so against a Servant even if he must - kindly thoughtful he was in that regard. He would be eaten alive in this war against Masters of ruthless integrity.

But to have Edward relinquish his Seals to the Overseer, expanding the army of the Blue Faction by two more Servants, a faction that may be just as deplorable as its Red counterpart due to the idea Edward has implanted - a possibility that the Blue Faction may be using unacceptable methods to boost their army of Servants. If true, then she cannot allow Edward and Alphonse to be involved in something so dangerous. They should not have to be forced into a fight they have no desire to attend.

"Ed," she addresses the Alchemist, acknowledging how overwhelming these past few hours have been and proceeded gently. "If you still wish to remain out of the war, I can help you. I'll need some time, but I will find a solution. You have my word on this."

 _Yeah well, I'm getting the feeling I won't be so far apart from this at all_. The Seals, the attack from these Servants. Twice did it occur. Either he stumbled upon it, or it persists his way, as if unavoidable.

"-In the meantime, Archer and Caster will have to stay here with you."

Surprised, Edward shift his gaze from the men of abnormalities to Jeanne, "What?! Why do they have to be here with us?!"

"You are their Master," Jeanne asserts. "Their duty is to protect you from any danger, we also do not know if the city is completely safe from the enemy Servants. It's best that they remain close by."

"As you have seen for yourself, the Servants are not to be affronted with. I'm sure you have already learned that by now."

Edward threw a glare at Archer who merely grinned his way, daring to be corrected or objected. "I admit," Archer added, "It is by my own miscalculation that I never considered you to be so impulsive as to protect the Ruler Servant from something far stronger than you." To survive afterwards was also a feat worthy of an applaud.

"Do not tease your Master, Archer," Jeanne warned before diverting her displeasure to Edward. "But you should not have been so reckless Edward, I would have been fine from that Saber's attack." Heavily injured, but not instant death, which Edward had narrowly avoided due to her quick reaction.

"It was an admirable attempt," said Caster. "But I agree with Ruler. Please take better caution in the future. You have much of a life ahead of you still."

Irritated as he was to admit it, Edward also could not deny that it was in fact a foolhardy attempt. He refuses to accept a hopeless match, but no matter how much he wishes this, that Servant was simply too strong for him, a chilling reminder of his first meeting with the blue Lancer. For the last month, Edward has only ever succeeded one battle, and lost three previous matches. Lancer, Scar, those monsters at the fifth Laboratory, he barely survived his fight with the Slicer brothers and that was what is considered a win. Far too many close calls, and he would have bitten the dust much sooner had Jeanne not been there.

He has to get stronger. Who else will protect his little brother and friends when the need arise? For how long can he remain this powerless until he is killed? There was only one person he could think of, someone who may grant him more knowledge and skills. The instructor who was responsible for further developing the Elric brothers Alchemy since they were children.

Without a doubt, complication will rear its head should the Elric brothers reveal what they have done to themselves, but if it will mean that he may know more, improve his fighting, he shall brace himself for the repercussion, no matter how terrifying it would be to do so.

"Now, at the subject matter of our stay," Archer brought up, "From what I understand, you wish to refrain the sight of your Seals from those officers."

Edward carefully considered, "...I'd rather not let those guys get anymore involved with this Grail War mess. I don't fully understand it, but it's pretty obvious that it's more than what any of us are used to. I trust the lieutenant and sergeant, but we're already dealing with another major problem in our own military, and I don't want to put their lives in anymore jeopardy."

A weary look drawn, he settled his hand over his knee, gripping. "I'm sure I'll get another slap for keeping this from them. Until then, I need some time to get all this through my head."

A nod of understanding from Caster, "Then we shall be dutifully careful."

"If that is what you want..." Jeanne had thoughts that Edward should perhaps sleep first before he can truly conclude if he should tell the officers or not, but she held no objections to his concerns. The officers are now aware of the Holy Grail War, but on the basis that enemy Masters or Servants may lurk somewhere closely, exposing too much would put the officers in grave danger. She too would not wish for their lives to be threatened.

"Lieutenant Maria will return soon," she reminded. "For now, return to your spirit forms Archer, Caster, and remain out of sight until your Master requests your presence again."

Edward's face contorted in disgust, "Can you stop calling me that? I'm no Master of anything or of anybody."

He pointed at his Servants, "That goes for you guys too. I want you to stop referring to me as "Master." I don't like it, and I find it hard to believe either of you are okay with following just about anybody without much say." It was a disdainful for anyone to have a hold on someone's will.

"You would be accurate in that assumption," said Archer. "I find you interesting enough, but adamant as you are for this war, it cannot be helped. I shall retreat for tonight then, but do take what I've said, young man. The Holy Grail may not lose its interest of you so easily."

Edward's disgruntled glare remained, even as he was mesmerized by the disappearing form of Archer, into the last few golden particles which vanished soon after. "I swear I am going to find out how he does that..." The idea of deconstructing and reconstructing your body by will, what an endless possibility that would bring about.

"I could offer you more insights of how our existence functions, but perhaps another time," Caster offered. "As for what Archer has said, I'm sure Ruler and I will come to a solution. Be at ease my friend, we will do whatever we can to help you." He bid everyone a good rest, and dematerialized into thin air.

"Incredible..." Alphonse could not think of anything else but that. "Who would of thought that something like these guys, what they are and can do, was possible..."

"I'd say the same, except it's giving me a serious headache."

A gentle expression, Jeanne rose from her seat, "You should get rest soon. Maria shouldn't take too long now..." Her face then scrounged with guilt, "And... about the Philosopher's Stones."

He looked at her, the barest hint of his feelings to her earlier kept secret. "I know there's nothing I can say to ever make up for what I've kept quiet from you and Alphonse, I can only beg for your forgiveness."

Edward is not one to easily forgive, for someone to ask for forgiveness, they must be willing to put forth the effort. But it would be unreasonable if he accepted that she was in the complete wrong. Even so...

"I'm not happy about it, at all." He announced unrelentingly. Jeanne had lowered her head in shame before he added, "I get where you're coming from though. But just so we're clear, is there anything else you're hiding from us?"

The girl shook her head firmly, "No, there isn't-" She stopped herself, "Oh... well, actually..."

A dispassionate glare from Edward, "Seriously? What else is there?" Was it any worse than the Philosopher's Stones, this secret war, _the summoning of Servants_?

"U-um... that is..." She held to her blouse nervously, feeling the beating heart that was not hers. "I don't know how I should explain this..." The vital secrecy of the Holy Grail War and the nature of her existence has long been broken between them, but even in the presence of an unwilling Master, she did not wish to bring any more harm of betrayal. But how far could she really tell him? He has reacted terribly in the face of what is unbelievable in his eyes, how much could she reveal? How much badly he reject her?

She did not want that. She wishes nothing more than for that to never happen. She felt only the utmost care for these brothers, or perhaps...

Inwardly, Jeanne smiled at her hidden companion. _You really wish to be close to these brothers._

The tentative lack of response from Rose was her only confirmation. Because of that, the regret to ruin the chance of Rose bonding with these boys was the main reason for Jeanne's restraining herself from being forthright. She had long became familiar with how much Rose has admired the Fullmetal Alchemist, for his tenacity, his courage, to do what is right without hesitation. He's…

 _A lot like you._

Jeanne was caught off guard at Rose's stated comparison, and narrowly jumped in her seat when two fingers snapped in front of her eyes. "Hello? You're spacing out again! Don't try to get out of this one by marching down the Fuhrer's office like before." Although Edward would make sure not to be dragged to the floor again.

"Ah! I'm sorry! I was..." Jeanne gathered her bearings. "I know you want to know more, and as fantastical as it may sound, if it would not harm you or Alphonse I would have no fear to tell you. You may believe that I am lying, I will assert that I'm not. But knowing what you have seen so far, can you promise me that you would at the very least consider what I say is true?"

A battle of conflicting thoughts danced behind Edward's golden eyes, his fist clenched in a tight squeeze. He glanced at his brother for support, but Alphonse avoided his gaze, emotionally exhausted from tonight's events most likely. Finally, Edward sighed, "This whole thing is crazy, you know that, right? You got to admit that."

"I understand that it is incredible, I would hardly understand it if I were back home," Jeanne agreed. "But it doesn't matter to me if I can comprehend it or if I'm afraid of it. Nobody alive can say for certain what is not possible, nobody on earth can say what should only be allowed. All I have, just to bear with it all, is faith."

"Faith is only a temporary comfort," Edward argued. "It doesn't help on the long-run."

"To some, sadly. But it helps us keep our balance when there's nothing in the world we cannot make sense of." She continues before Edward could retort, "It's not just a simple "excuse." There is no easy or achievable way to have the answer for everything in existence. I will not deter Alchemists like yourself to stop searching for that answer, but in the case that you are willing to consider that there is more beyond the laws of this world, the answer may as well be right in front of you. Whether you agree with it or not, no one can say "it does not exist," the same goes for saying "it does exist." There is, and there isn't, but it is not for us to decide."

Edward scowled, "Not for us to decide. No, that's up to _God_ , isn't it?"

"I will forgive your jab at _Him_ , I know better than to rebuke against you. You have suffered so much already, and I am not naive of those who uses God's name for their own benefits, Liore was only another example of that." It was not at all what God adhere, it was not the beauty and promises of _His_ love. Edward's horrifying past is not one to move from so easily, but if there is a way, a chance for Jeanne to show him that there is more to the world than false miracles and a cynical meager existence, she would be glad to do so for the broken heart of the Fullmetal Alchemist to be mended.

"My beliefs shape my views, yes. But I admit having so limited knowledge, I know nothing in the grand scheme, or know how to question it. I can barely know how to write my own name or what equals three plus two. When there is nothing left, there is faith. When there is nothing to understand, you are left with that very thing. It isn't merely for comfort, it is so that we can stand and walk."

She retracted herself. She was getting off topic here. "All I'm trying to say is that if you wish to hear what I know, it may be too disturbing or unreal to accept, but if you still wish to hear it, then I cannot promise to hold back. If you can spare that much trust in me, then I will be wholly honest with you. It would have been different if you were never a Master for this war, but now that you are and you now know as much as what you have seen, then I must do what I can to inform so that you would take better caution, for you and your brother."

 _Would you be willing to trust me in that regard?_ It was a damning question, but that is the meaning of faith. When logic and the stable reality of the world fails, in every dark hour at the pit of despair, out of desperation or helplessness, there can be seen a flicker of light. Bravely grasping that faint hope, to say having faith is an easy task is an ignorant statement, when the brink of hopelessness has never been so close.

It is what her flag represents. The hopes of her comrades and those who have heard of her story. The light that burned so bright in the midst of death and loss, that even when her life vanished in the midst of the hateful flames, the passion in her heart never died out.

Edward's glare lessened into bafflement, as if Jeanne had grown a second head. It took him a moment before he could find the words, "...You don't know what three plus two is?"

Jeanne processed, and her face brimmed red, "That is not the point! What I'm saying is-"

"Yeah yeah, I get what you're saying," he cut her off with a wave. Flustered and irritation colored Jeanne's cheeks, rolling her fingers into a fist. She is almost certain he is being dismissive on purpose.

Furthermore, it was a blatant example! She knew basic equation as anyone!...To an extent. She will need her fingers to count, but she knows her math well enough!

A sigh from Edward as he slouches in his seat, "...You're right that we don't have an answer to everything, not even Alchemists can figure that out. There's been decades of philosophical research just to find out about the meaning of life, and we're still not satisfied." He grabbed his head, a hefty growl, "I hate not knowing, but I hate not being able to understand even more."

He fixed his posture and determinedly faced Jeanne, "And on that, not knowing any better almost cost me. Last time I walked into a fight without realizing what's going on, I nearly died."

A strange look upon him as he looked to his chest, "...I guess I still owe you one for that. It was you, wasn't it? You somehow closed the wound that blue Lancer gave me, healing most of my injury."

"You remember that?" Jeanne asked, surprised that he had been conscious enough that time. She was about to object that he owed her anything, she simply did what she felt was right to do, but Edward resumed.

"You weren't wrong that I wouldn't have believed you about the Philosopher's Stones before we looked into Marcoh's notes. By now, I already got an idea that this whole Grail War thing is proof that there's a lot I don't know. So… I want to change that. I'm tired of getting my ass handed to me. Even if it's not something I'm used to, I'll be a stubborn idiot who'll get himself killed unless I change the way I think."

He stretched out an index finger towards Jeanne, "I'm willing to listen, but if I do that, then you have to promise us. If you know anything that has to do with us, or whatever else is going on, let us in on it and I'll hear you out. But no more secrets, got it?"

Alphonse quietly "hmph"ed in a sour manner, but said nothing. Jeanne thought over Edward's proclamation. This is a tricky matter, he is a Master, but he would likely wish to revoke that title again. She should not say so much to a civilian, even a State Alchemist. However, if the matter has solely to do with the Elric brothers and not the Holy Grail War, then that can be arranged.

She wishes to repair the damage of her silence, she may offer the Elrics that much. "Unless it is under a dire situation, I can't say that I will tell you anymore about the Holy Grail War, since you would want to avoid participating it. But if I happen to find any news concerning the Philosopher's Stones, I will inform you right away."

"You promise?"

She nodded firmly. "I promise." There was no way for her to turn away from this crime. If she were to discover the main distributor of the Philosopher's Stones, someone who had forced Marcoh's hands into creating those stones and converting all those victims into nothing more than energy, she will end it right there, no matter who they are.

There was a knock on the door, a voice spoke through "It's Lieutenant Maria. There's a room ready for you Jeanne."

Jeanne thanked the officer from the other side and stands to leave. "I might consider staying in this city for a few days. The matter of what you've found is far too impending for me to overlook even with the war, but while I wish to investigate, I won't cause all of you any trouble. Please, if you need any help, I will be happy to lend you my aid."

With that, she left the Elrics to themselves. Edward watched her leave and briefly chatted with the lieutenant before announcing his desire to retreat to his room. "It's been one hell of a night, huh Al?"

Alphonse only muffled a response, earning a confused look from Edward, "Are you alright? You've been mostly quiet."

Alphonse raises his head, evidently wanting to say the reason for his troubled demeanor, but no sooner did he meet Edward's eyes that he could not fight the urge to look away. "…It's nothing, just… overwhelmed."

Edward understood completely, rhetorically stating "Tell me about it. I sure as hell don't want to mention to Winry what happened here. If she can come fix my arm, it's better not to freak her out so much while she's here."

Although he doubt it would be so easy to hide the assault on Central, ten times more severe than the Freezing Alchemist case, who would be able to hide such a such scene?

He bid Alphonse a good rest, far too exhausted to note the weak reply of his younger brother, and walked to his room. Falling onto bed, he stared at the ceiling. Relentlessly, he reminded himself the absurdity of tonight, of everything that has happened and more. The Philosopher's Stones, a conspiracy within the military - Edward had always figured that the system was far from perfect, more corrupt as it was exemplified with the Ishvalan War, but this was far more disturbing. Then there was the Holy Grail War, the existence of these Servants, and the return of the Command Seals.

He outstretched his human arm, his white glove hiding his hand while his sleeve hid below the wrist, catching sight of the red symbols that was there. Ten days ago, he would have thought the idea of what these Seals mean to be ludicrous and vile. That belief was not changed, yet now there was the question if he can truly part with these Seals. As Archer had stated, the Grail seems oddly keen to have him, and while he certainly would prefer to spite its demands, it was not so strongly, despite what he and his allies have survived hours ago.

 _Is this what you've been up against, Jeanne?_

Everything he has seen, how could anyone think to handle it on their own? He didn't care if that girl is as strong as the Servants, she was just one person. She wasn't immune to harm, and it's already been stated how much of a target she was to whoever wanted her dead. Does she really believe she can oppose against such odds? …Of course, it was only moments ago that she was willing to run head-first into the Fuhrer and demand answers. She has guts, that was certain.

Furthermore, beside her having to face this situation alone, how can Edward ignore this any longer? Insane as it was, he cannot look away from it, not while it has become so grand that an entire city was threatened and attacked. It wasn't a matter of answering a soldier's duty, it was his common sense that there was a threat nobody can ignore. The military is doing what it could to suppress it, but only a selected few are even aware of the secret war. A foolish decision, he realized. Everyone had to be aware; villages are under attacked, civilians and soldiers alike are being killed, and now a city - the city where most of the Amestrian Military is stationed, has been under fire. Amestris is in danger, and there is no safe haven anywhere. Not here, not Resembool...

Resembool, what if this terrorist group goes after his home? What if they attack East City? Or Dublith where his teacher lived? What place are they after next? How many lives do they intend to endanger, and kill?

He closed his hand into a tight grip. His heart beating strong. If that is what may await sometime in the future, then he cannot walk away from this. Perhaps this was the wake-up call he needed.

* * *

 **The future uncertain, the Fullmetal Alchemist and the Holy Maiden rested along with their worries...**

 **Hello lovely readers!** **Thank you all for your support and kind words for this story! Especially the Tv Tropes comment, I unfortunately don't know how to set one up for this story, the one for A Knight's Tale as Inquisitor was done by a friend, so I have no idea what amount of effort goes into putting up Tv Tropes for a story even though it is an interesting idea, but I insanely appreciate your words either way!**

 **To Silver Remoraid: There is definitely going to be another faction, and you're going find out exactly what faction that is in the next chapter...**

 **Please leave more kind and honest reviews! I love you all and God Bless!**


	13. Suspicions and Worries

Chapter 13: Suspicions and Worries

"Thank you all for gathering..."

Within the lair that hid beneath the grounds of Central Command, Father addresses the Servants below from the steps that led to his chamber. His homunculi children waited aside as their creator spoke to the warriors who have participated in the great battle of Central City, excluding the attendance of Fuhrer Bradley's Servants.

Amakusa Shirou stood at the very corner of the room, choosing to observe silently. Gluttony lay on the floor beside a wall, having a happy feast as his Archer Tawara Touda happily poured his bottomless rice into his Master's mouth, just as he promised. Though Tawara would have liked sharing a meal with everyone, it was undoubtedly an inopportune time of celebration. There were no confirmed deaths of any Servant from the Red Faction, and a section of the city had nearly been decimated by the Saber of Red's Noble Phantasm should she had successfully unleashed it.

Yet despite this, the Man in White seemed rather pleased.

"You have all fought valiantly, and successfully defended this city from peril."

He vocally applauded the powers the Servants have bestowed, a sight of approval that his homunculi children were amazed to witness, to have this much of a reaction towards anyone but themselves, especially those who have once been humans. Of course, these Servants have long abandoned the limitations of human beings, and have become something greater that Father himself would hold a rare level of respect he never has for anyone else. These Servants were truly astounding, an intriguing existence far superior from the rest of humanity.

But his homunculi children understood well, Father only ever caters to those who have proven their usefulness. These Servants were important pieces to their game of chess, they were the most impressive tools they could ever have a hold of; that is the extent of Father's compliments and the homunculi's perception of them. The heroic spirits were their valuable pawns, and nothing more.

"Now then, while tonight's battle has allowed us to see a fraction of the Red Faction's power, let us address a few things first...Achilles."

The Rider of green hair steps forth. He correctly assumed the coming question, betraying no sense of reluctance in having to explain himself.

"Why did you run from Berserker of Red?"

The face of Penthesilea's inflamed hatred for the Greek Hero flashed through Achilles' mind, her intense desire for his demise. Achilles barely withheld his shudder at his recall of her once more.

"Furthermore, she knew your name, and declared it loud enough for anyone within that storm to hear. Do you happen to know her?"

After a pause, Achilles confirmed, "Her name's Penthesilea. I fought her once..." He scratched the back of his neck. "Guess I should have thought that there was a chance she would be in this war." It is the same to expect Hector or perhaps his own teacher Chiron to be included in this war, though there has been no confirmation as of now, if it ever will. But for Penthesilea to be the first familiar figure he meets? What horrible luck he has.

"For you, a prideful warrior, to run from her. Is she that powerful of an opponent?"

"She's an Amazon, in my world and era, the Amazonians are powerful women with incredible strength, daughters of the God of War himself. Penthesilea was an Amazonian Queen, and by far..." He swallowed, glancing at his shoes. A brief haunted expression before his eyes hardened from his honest words, "She's one of the toughest fighters I've ever met. I barely survived and won against her."

It was a curious sight for the boastful Rider to be this uncomfortable at the mention of the Amazonian Ex-Queen, she truly must be a force to take tremendous caution against; that is what some would believe should they only take Achilles' information at face-value. For those who knew Achilles' history, they would understand that his uneasy behavior is not due to having only fought against a powerful warrior, but what had been done to the Amazonian.

"You were victorious against her before. Would it be of greater difficulty should you challenge her once more?" Archimedes questioned.

Achilles took time to consider his answer, "She should already know how I fight, my weak point won't matter to her. Since she has a high level Divinity, she can ignore my invincibility and land a good blow. But she's a lot younger now than the last time I saw her, which means she isn't in her prime. Even if she knew all my weaknesses, I still have a better chance."

Envy scowled, "If that's true, then why the hell did you ran away?"

By Achilles' description, he holds a greater advantage against Penthesilea and her current form. The issue was that he did not want to fight her. He can defeat her, but he did not wish to. Rather preferring to avoid repeating the ordeal of her defeat by his hands.

"I was... surprised. It wasn't exactly a nice reunion, not after the last time she saw me," was Achilles' pitiful excuse, but he could not hide his shame at his first immediate reaction to run.

"That's obvious enough," Lust said. "Nothing's more deadly than a woman's scorn, especially if it's towards her murderer," there was pleasure at seeing Achilles' indignant, yet conflicted hint of agreement to her label. Lust believed herself justified, a her testimony to her contained displeasure, "But because you didn't kill her right away, she should already be telling her group about your identity by now."

"Consequently, even if the Red Faction has a few Servants with Divine Nature, those without Divinity are now aware of your weak point," Archimedes stated. "Your name in itself is famous enough, and so is your heel. The loss of your invincibility would not only cut down your parameters, you would also lose your chariot. Losing both of your greatest Noble Phantasms, anyone may easily harm you."

"Hey! Don't you _dare_ take me lightly," Achilles barked at the impassive Caster. "Every Servant can know my weak point and they still would have to fight through hell if they think they can beat me. With or without Andreias Amarantos, I can still take on all of them!"

The tension broke at Father's laughter, "Now that's the spirit. I'm glad to hear it." Nullifying his laughter, he gazes piercingly, "I will take those words to heart, but even so, keep your heels guarded Achilles. I'd rather have you fight with all of your power than have it cut in half."

"You know what's funny?" Envy unamusingly began. "For so much talk about being the best and wanting to face the entire Red Faction, you couldn't even bother to kill one of their Servants?! You've already failed to kill that Lancer in East City during your patrol, and the Fullmetal Alchemist almost died because of it!"

Shooting a glare without daunt, Achilles responded to Envy's ridicule, "Well, someone hadn't bothered to tell me that that kid was apparently important to you guys. As if I would know who the kid was."

"He's an important asset to the military, one so valuable that we cannot afford to lose." Father's neutral tone was swift and cold, an end to any further elaboration of the Fullmetal Alchemist's importance. His smile slowly returned, "But there's nothing to worry about. It was not your fault and the boy managed to survive in the end. So there's no need to be so harsh on our Rider, Envy."

At Father's wordily discretion, Envy refrained from saying anymore. It was a brief topic that led astray from the main focus of tonight's result of their battle, however, apart from a few curious warriors, Mordred was among the most suspecting of Servants.

Being raised under her conniving mother Morgana, Mordred adopted the same sense of cunning and observation fitting for a conspirator - had she been a proper one from the start before her blinding love for her King abruptly ended by the cold dismissive words. Mordred may have been deemed to be the pawn of Morgana in her legend, but Mordred was not a mindless brash knight. Spitting fire as she feels it necessary does not make her an idiot.

When Mordred was told that her last attack had actually destroyed a government-owned property, she was not as reprimanded as Achilles was. Despite the dangerous effect her Noble Phantasm she unleashed out of anger, destroying not only what belonged to the government but could have killed bystanders in the midst of it - which thankfully has not happened, her Master did not show any anger unlike how he was to Achilles. Mordred shamefully admitted her careless action that could have caused several civilians to die, yet only she was berating herself for it. Apparently, they were not so annoyed by the accident, since they can simply find a new place. It is as if they recently _wanted_ that building destroyed for whatever reason, but that alone was not the most suspicious reaction she noticed from the Homunculi.

Two weeks ago, there was talk among the Servants of Blue; about how one of them is distantly guarding a man who was said to be working in his private quarters, a special guest and an important candidate to their efforts of empowering the military for the sake of this war. Mordred has not met this man, but when she confronted Envy about this hidden guest of theirs, her Master simply told her to not worry about him and place her attention on the war. When she continuously pressed for answers, Envy at last told her that their hidden guest was a scientist, in fact, he was the one to have made the red candy, and now seeks to continue his work upon coming out of retirement, but would rather do so in private. Yet even for Envy's somewhat straightforward answer, Mordred could not rid the gut-feeling that there was more to it, that he is purposefully hiding something from her.

The level of importance that the homunculi spoke for the man was almost the same as this Fullmetal Alchemist. At the time when the Fullmetal Alchemist was hospitalize after enduring an attack from a Lancer Servant, Achilles had been given quite the tongue-lashing from Envy at his failure to protect the boy before Father had to silence him with just a call of his name. For some reason, this group of artificial beings - so much like herself that it was almost disturbing, have an interest to people like the Fullmetal Alchemist and the unseen scientist, but why? What sort of reasons do they have for these Alchemists well-being? It couldn't have just been their talents, there were plenty of other Alchemists here in Central, how are these two humans more important than the rest?

Mordred found it strange. Very strange. She cannot accept it as anything else but that. Nothing about this sat right with her. Not the homunculi's display of friendliness to the government officials and other members of Central Command, not their cooperation and trust with each other. It was almost unfathomable, peculiar. Nothing about this made sense.

Because as far as Mordred could tell, there is not a zilch of affection the Homunculi has for any one of those persons. After all, what reason would they have to give a damn about humans?

* * *

A quiet night hails over Kotonelm Church, a distant observer to the abnormal storm, and miraculously avoided being swallowed by its presence. Another few minutes of the storm's increasing size however, and the church would have been overtaken as well. Though a sense of peace reigns here once more, no later did the Grand Battle of Central City come to a sudden end, that Kotonelm was contacted by Riley who had been absent from this city, on travel in search of Masters to combat. She had received disturbing news from the other churches of what unfolded here in Central, and called Father Kotonelm to confirm.

 _"SIXTEEN SERVANTS?!"_

Suffice to say, she was rather appalled. There had never been a battle between Servants at such a massive scale in the history of the Holy Grail War, it was the absolute worst case scenario in the midst of the Heaven's Feel absurd expansion. A surprise in itself that only one building was destroyed in the crossfire, while everything else in the city remained intact. The aghast scream of Riley through the receiver was loud enough that it could be heard from outside the church, an expected reaction after Kotonelm informed her of tonight's grand battle.

"Correct. Only minor damages were reported. A building was destroyed but no casualties. The civilians who were caught up in the illusion storm were able to live through it unharmed. As of now, the military is granting them support and rescue."

The government will most certainly attempt to declare the storm as the work of illegal Alchemy gone amok, and send their military to clean up the mess. The Blue Faction may have to send in their spell casters to alter the witnesses' memories, erase what may have been seen inside that storm, just to avoid any more complications and prodding suspicions of the civilians.

"The invading Servants vanished instantly, though there are no confirmed deaths. No traces of their presence are detected throughout Central, but nothing is completely affirmed as of yet."

 _"R-really?..."_ Riley intakes a deep breath, reclaiming her composure. _"No casualties, and only one thing destroyed... That's actually hard to believe if that's all what came out of this. Either way, for anyone's Servant - not just one - to attack a city right next to the main base of Amestris' military power is just_ insane _._ _It's like those Masters want the Mage Society to be exposed."_

Kotonelm could hear the frustration in Riley's voice. Why on earth would someone unleash such a large scale attack? Even Kotonelm is without any idea. As marvelous the scene was, if this were to happen once more, the Mage Association will have to send more of their battalion to the point that it may as well be the start of an invasion from the West. Of course, that amount of work takes time, preparation, enough to brace themselves against the Red Faction and their Servants, even if it means forcing most of the opposing Masters to work together to annihilate a common threat, which is already the case.

"Do you plan on returning to Central?"

There was a pause at the other end of the receiver. _"...No. The battle's already over so there's no point. If there's a group of Servants willing to attack so publically, I'll need to continue my travel to find any info about them, in case no one has any plans to stop them soon. I won't be coming back for a while, depending on how long this broken war will last, unless something like this happens again."_

"Hmmm. Quite a tall order, and you intend to accomplish this with just your Archer and yourself?"

 _"Don't pretend you care,"_ her tone flat, she was not corrected on what was true. _"I can hear that smug smile from you, you're worse than my Servant. I'm sure the Mage Association would appreciate any help to deal with this. I have a duty as a Magus keeping the secrets of my ancestors work from going public to anyone who thinks they can follow it like it's Alchemy. I won't turn away from this galling act, especially if Ruler may not be able to completely fulfill her duty with every Master and Servants fighting across the country, where she won't have any time to find these rogue Masters."_

That is undoubtedly true, and Kotonelm had to wonder if this is the reason the Red Faction decided to perform the outrageous stunt. Knowing that Ruler alone cannot withstand all of their power at once.

"It is your choice then. It may be too much, but try not to foolishly do anything that will land yourself in a terrible spot." It was his best form of wishing her "good luck," from a man who never believed in such ridiculous parting words.

 _"Idiot."_

A loud click ended the call, and Kotonelm chucked behind his grin. Setting back the receiver, he eases onto the chair he sat upon. The Homunculi have yet to contact him, possibly focused on listening to the reports of their Servants and their close experience clashing with the Red Faction, but he suspects to hear from them very soon. There was also the matter of Ruler, she was here when the battle began, and is still present within the city, but has yet to approach either the Fuhrer or himself. Perhaps she is attending to the wounded, offering aid whenever she could.

Or perhaps his thoughts of her suspicion rung true, and she is avoiding any sort of contact with the church and the military that she feels best not to trust. He would prefer to search and confirm her location, but not now. Not while tensions are high, a lookout for enemy Servants that may still be near. No matter if they are of the Red Faction or not, the Blue Faction will not hesitate to exterminate any potential threat.

He shall have to keep his scout at bay then, until the heat of the Blue Faction's caution dwindles.

 _"Have you found anything?"_ Kotonelm mentally reaches out. A brief moment later, he received a response.

 _"It's quiet outside the city. Got a couple of guys in blue uniforms looking around. Saw one picking up some bag but that's about it. No sign of any Servant."_

The military has sent their soldiers on guard duty. Seeking out for the likeliness of the Red Faction Servants return. For no Servant of Red to have been seen leaving Central, then their instant disappearance could in fact be the work of a Command Seal, and they have returned to their base. Quite the trouble they caused if only to waste a Seal in order to retreat, Kotonelm had the assumption the Red Faction would only resort to that if at least one or two of their Servants have perished. But perhaps having a taste of the Blue Faction's power was enough, and the lose of a Seal can easily be coped with if it means victory is further assured, intending to destroy their opponent swiftly the next time they clash.

A reckless endeavor. Kotonelm wondered if there was actually some strategy to this, or it is merely to test the mettle of the enemy Masters. This would inquire that they are actually aware that a number of Masters were in Central to begin with. A gamble to see if this was true? Or was there more to this than a simple act of invading and fleeing.

 _"Oh, and did I mention how much I hate you?"_ His scout added.

That was not a surprise at all. Kotonelm knew to expect this attitude, as if it was the only available form of rebelling against the priest, to spite and bite with words.

 _"That was a huge fight! I could have join the fray and fought with every Servant there! You really just gonna keep me on the sidelines?"_

Kotonelm impassively answered, _"As we've previously agreed, your job is to observe the Red Faction, while also keeping an eye towards our close ally the Blue."_

It was, however, admittedly amusingly for the priest to withhold the simple wish to seek a fair and straight-forward match from the other man. It would also be beneficial for Kotonelm to not let the Homunculi know that he has someone spying on them.

 _"I would also be right to further restrain you, after you've been careless to allow one of the Riders of the Blue Faction to catch you. You will do well to be more cautious next time, Lancer."_

His Lancer merely "Tch!" in response. Kotonelm then added, _"Hold your position for the rest of the night. Keep watch for any Servant, and do not let any members of the Blue Faction see you again."_

 _"Fine! Fine! I get the picture. I'll just sit here bored out of my mind. Not like I want to start something or go fishing anyway."_

They ended their communication there. Though even for Lancer's carelessness in East City, perhaps Kotonelm's passionless reprimand was unjustified. The priest could not expect for his Lancer, no matter how agile the warrior is, to outrun the fastest Servant of the Blue Faction. Even so, it was a close call.

Careful as Kotonelm made sure of it, the Homunculi are not aware of this secret; that he, in fact, has a Servant of his own. The Seals he carries for Lancer were blended within the numerous Command Seals printed on his arm, Seals that were from previous Holy Grail Wars; remnants of past Masters who have lost and died, leaving behind their unused Seals which the Overseer of every war collects and holds for future necessity in the next battle ritual. Insurance, so to speak.

Even after being revealed that he has this many unused Command Seals hiding under the sleeve of his priest garb, Shirou Amakusa was able to persuade the Homunculi into letting him keep the Seals, as none of what he has are those that controls their Servants, and that Kory Kotonelm can be of use to their group. They agreed to allow Kotonelm uphold his title as Overseer and resume his duty, in exchange for his compliance to grant the Blue Faction his spare sets of Command Seals for replenishment, and thus the Homunculi Masters are not limited to only three Seals for each of their Servants, so long as Kotonelm has several more.

He "recieved" this Servant over a month ago when he was traveling to meet with the other churches about the state of the war, and ever since his return to Central, he willingly refrained to enlighten the Homunculi of what he has, even if he excuses himself the reason for how and why he obtained Lancer, they may execute him without hesitation. The Homunculi would never be able to tell, not as long as he can keep the sight of the various Seals from exposing the one set that binds his Lancer. He has also been careful not to directly speak with Lancer, and keep the Servant as far away from Kotonelm as possible; whether to be on the other side of the city, or the other side of Amestris. The reason for having a Servant to begin with, despite the tremendous risk it carries if the Homunculi were to find out, it settles down to one simple matter.

He was curious to know and understand the intentions of the Homunculi, but as daring as it was to see the aftermath of the Homunculi's plan, he is an Overseer and member of the church first and foremost. He had underwent severe training that tested the limits of his mentality and faith, his body suffered through torment to become something that can oppose both Magus and Alchemist alike. A walking Black Key forged to bestow the judgment of God upon all unforgiving sinners, unapologetic heretics, and Godless monsters.

It was a violation in itself as a member of the Church to work with the family of monsters, monsters that has powers neither the Church or the Mage Association are equipped to hold themselves against, leading him to correctly assume that their creator - their Father, has an even greater power, with a mentality that does not sympathize with any life outside his own; a trait Kotonelm was able to dissect with ease.

There was no doubt that the Homunculi are without good intentions, but he cannot investigate without compromising himself. Thus, he had to rely on a pawn of his own, a capable warrior to act as his spy, and follow the shadows of the Homunculi's plans while under the guise of an opposing Servant separated from either Factions, following the whims of his Master. What happened in East City with the Fullmetal Alchemist was not planned, but the reaction of the Homunculi was worth noting. The Fullmetal Alchemist; Edward Elric, was indeed a precious resource, and he could not help but wonder what they would have done if the boy had truly died that night.

They did not share this level of favortism to other State Alchemists. Somehow, this boy poses a greater specialty. What that specialty is, he was not sure. He has heard that the Fullmetal Alchemist has the ability to perform Alchemy without the use of a Transmutation Circle, and although indeed a unique talent, what else was there to it? Or was it something that confirmed the boy to be what the Homunculi were seeking, and became the very reason to imprint their interest towards the young Alchemist's well-being.

This was especially piqued when news of the State Alchemist Killer; Scar, was circling around the country. He has not heard of Scar since his last attempt to kill Edward Elric, leading him to wonder if the Homunculi have taken care of the Ishvalan. An answer he has not confirmed, and he could not inquire, or else they would take suspicion of him, but he was able to mark a pattern with their behavior; the value of certain humans and their remarkable ability in Alchemy. A need for a number of special Alchemists, which means there is a project waiting to be done.

Whatever purpose the Homunculi has for their self-inclusion to this war, intruding the competition with their schemes and shameless lies; Kotonelm will have to investigate to discover for himself, and unravel their secret objective.

Then, and _only then_ , will he decide to act against it, or bask in its brilliance.

* * *

Riley placed back the receiver with a click and turned to leave the telephone booth. She upheld a stern exterior as she walked down the empty sidewalk, but inside, she was furious. She had already been aware of a rogue group of Masters terrorizing the country every few years, horrorfied by the extent of their deeds that left only a few alive, but for them to go after an entire city was unfathomable. Ever since she first heard of this group, she wanted to quicken her pace and throw herself into the war so to help stop this group, but at the time, she had not been too worried. The Mage Association would have already sentenced Masters of the Red Faction under a Sealing Designation, and hunters should have been sent years ago since the crimes of the rogue group began escalating.

However, as far as she has heard, no one from the Association has found any trace of where the rogue group is stationed here in Amestris. Surely they looked everywhere, and yet, how is it that they have not found anything yet? No matter what type of Bounded Field the rogue group might be using to hide their presence and location, there is no level of Magecraft that could be left undetected by anyone from the Association... unless it was a very special Magecraft that could only be done by someone not of this era. More accurately, a Servant who hails from another dimension.

If that were so, only the Ruler Servant would be able to see through whatever spell a Servant has implanted, and have the ability to track them, but for her to not already declare the location of the rogue group so that all Mages and their Servants would gather to put an end to them, it either means she is far too busy to search for them, or even the Ruler Servant cannot find them for some reason, which means Riley cannot place all her hopes on Ruler. She will just have to find the rogue group herself. No matter how foolish she is to do this, she cannot ignore the blatant disregard towards the people of Amestris, as well the threat to reveal the existence of the Mage Society to the whole world.

 _"I take it that not everything is well?"_

Riley shook her head, quietly responding to her Servant. "Actually, the city is okay. Some damages but nothing major, and no one died surprisingly. Not even the Servants."

 _"Is that so? How miraculous."_

"Yeah... Almost too good to be true." Not that Riley could call herself cynical, but how could no one have perished in the midst of a fight between Sixteen Servants? Even if the Heroes were extremely careful, they were dealing with a most ruthless group - the Red Faction, yet not even the Servants of Red have killed anyone. Were they... never intended to cause another massacre? The more she thought about it, Riley realized how downright careless the whole stunt was, risking their own Servants. Why go so far as to make a ruckus and not gain anything from it?

 _"While the worst has been avoided, we've missed quite the battle."_

Riley nodded. "I'll admit. I'm a little annoyed by that, but there's nothing to do about it now." If she had known there was going to be a massive battle in Central, she would have stayed just to participate her first official match no matter how disastrous it was for it to happen. As of now, she has not met with one Master she could call enemy or potential ally, and it is slowly beginning to aggravate her. It has been quiet until now, it should not be long until other Masters of different affiliations will come out of hiding. It was better that they don't all end up attacking each other at the same time, there would probably be nothing left but rubble in this country.

She takes a breath, "Sixteen Servants... I'm shocked that a big storm like that was able to hide anything, although I doubt it hid everything."

 _"The Red Faction is quite a bold group to go this far. Do you have any idea of where they might be?"_

"If I have, then so would the other Masters. For no one to have found even one evidence of where they are, they have to be using some kind of Magic to avoid everyone for this long."

Riley stopped in the middle of the sidewalk. "...I'm planning on finding them, Archer. I don't think I'll have a better chance as anyone else whose looked for them, but if by some miracle that we found them, even if it's just one or two of the Masters, and if push comes to shove that they would call in reinforcements just to keep us from telling anyone about where they're hiding... We might end up getting killed, Archer. I can't promise anything, but this is what probably will happen if we don't do everything carefully."

 _"Fortunately for you, I'm adverse in taking caution. Though I do appreciate your concerns for me, Master."_

An instinctive reaction, Riley puffed her chest to keep up with her cold indifference as a Magus, "I'm not concerned at all! I just... wanted to see if you're still willing to go through with this. We don't exactly have any allies right now. Even if we meet other Masters that are not part of the Red Faction, the chances that they would want to team up with us are slim since they would want the Grail for themselves or the glory of finding the Red Faction first."

 _"We are in a disadvantageous position, that is true. But as I have said before, I am just as capable as any Servant. I'll fight no matter the odds, and know that I do not intend to lose. You won't have a reason to worry."_

Riley huffed, satisfied with Archer's response. While it sounded like a cocky remark, Archer assured her that he is only ever a reckless man when it was absolutely necessary. That is the sort of attitude Riley supported. _If willing to risk everything, there is always a trade-off._ That applies to anyone regardless of what they do; they will gain something, or have something taken. The one mistake that can be done about this, is if you do not learn anything from it.

 _Even if you end up dead, that was the result of the trade-off. Never assume you gained nothing from it._

Archer silently evaluated his Master. More than two weeks have passed since his summoning and following the orders of the girl, who nearly mirrored another person he once knew and has so long forgotten about. It was wonderous that he was able to remember the name of that girl; Rin Tohsaka. Riley Tohmerson was in every way who Rin was but name and ethnicity. Because of this, no matter how aware of himself Archer was, he did not let the opportunity slip by; he prodded and tested her patience, joshed and even taunted - all just to see how much of "Rin" she really is. Of course, he may have crossed the line more than once. There were a few instances when her posture went stiff and her Command Seals began to glow, before she takes a steady breath and retorted Archer's comments with a level head.

Riley did in fact share the same short-temperment as Rin, but comparing the two, Riley was more tamed. An impressive sense of self-control that she could not have applied for herself. While disappointing, Archer was actually glad of this. A composed Master has a better shot of survival, and in a Grand War such as this, she needed to have a clear head if she is to come out as the sole victor. He had questioned her how she will support herself for the duration of the war, exhaustion is likely to happen if she does not stock up enough resources for combating with other Masters and resume traveling. But Riley told him that she already has that taken care of, and after revealing what she meant by this, he believed her with hidden approval. "That one other thing" which also shows how different she and Rin really are.

 _"What is our next move then, Riley?"_

Riley answered without hesitation, "What else? We keep moving. Even if I want to go back to Central to see just how everything is, all we'll be doing is wasting time, and the city is probably on lock down anyway. No way is anybody going to be getting in and out for a while." She turns to a corner, the motel she registered for tonight there in sight.

"I already have an idea where we should go next. I called that "fake priest" yesterday, he told me about there being Servants somewhere in this town west from here..." A frown formed as Riley sunk in deep silence. She tried to bury it, bury the disturbance in her gut as she thought the best form to reach the next destination. _Get rid of it. Get rid of_ this _. Now is not the time to feel this way. You're a Magus now. Remember that._

 _"You seem uneasy."_ Archer read her correctly despite her best efforts to seem otherwise. Was she feeling nervous at the increasing chance she will meet an opposing Master? How odd this is, he felt the urge to tease her again.

"...It's nothing." Was all she said. She enters the vicinity of the motel and started walking to her room. "You're on watch duty again. Keep an eye out for any Servant that might come by."

Her deflective attitude made Archer all the more curious, but he accepted her orders and bid her a good night. Riley doubted it would be that simple, it is not a matter that she may finally have her opportuntiy to meet with an opponent, it is where this opponent is at that Riley was hesitant to follow, but no matter her feelings, she will not falter as a competitor.

Even if that place is the very place she wanted to avoid more than anywhere else.

* * *

Soldiers were called to work overtime, guarding the streets and the rest of Central all around, and many citizens are having trouble seeking rest after the terrifying event that brought the entire military on high alert, but eventual slumber was founded by some. Edward Elric fell into a deep sleep, a chance to break himself free from the insanity that had bloomed this night. Jeanne takes residence within another dorm registered for her by the kind lieutenant Ross, and it was much later that sergeant Brosh had finally returned in the middle of the night, bringing Jeanne's abandoned bag he at last found in the middle of the vast field outside the city. Though his exhausted self craved for sleep, he agreed with Ross to take turns on guard duty - they will be sure not to let the Elric brothers get the best of them again.

Unlike those in the hotel who had enough peace of mind to relax in their beds, and those who did not, there are a few who lacked the sensation of being tired. That is the familiar situation of Alphonse with his shell of a "body." While usually it was during this time that he was alone, companied by only his thoughts while waiting quietly for the morning sun to come, tonight, he found himself with actual company.

"Uh..." Alphonse sounded, unsure of what to do. In front of him was Archer in his navy blue attire, sitting across Alphonse in a chair next to a faintly lit lamp, and reading a book he randomly picked out from the bookshelf. His total attention at the material in his hand, the man paid no mind to Alphonse, which cannot be said the same for the young Alchemist. Alphonse looked at the small clock on the table beside him, it was already passed midnight.

"Um... Mr. Archer?" Alphonse shyly began. "Aren't you tired?"

Archer turned a page, answering without raising his head, "Not particularly. Though to be more precise, I no longer suffer from human needs such as sleep. I am now able to go without rest or food for as long as I am provided prana, which is not an issue due to myself as an Archer Servant."

Alphonse stared, appalled, "Seriously?! That's... Wow. But wait, _could_ you still eat and sleep if you wanted to?"

"I could, if only for the pleasure of it. You could say that it would be almost nostalgic for me to do so. Generally though, even when I was alive, I tend to take more priority with my work, that I survived through only small meals and light naps in a week or so."

"O-oh..." Alphonse stuttered. "That... doesn't sound healthy at all." But it was hard to tell, he lost memory of what it was like to personally feel hunger or fatigue, and would only be able to retain his understanding of it by watching others or reading books discussing about it.

"Oh believe me, my co-workers and acquaintances would say the same, every time they would find me in my workshop after not seeing me for a few days," a deep chuckle from Archer. "Fortunately, I will not experience any drawbacks from working overtime, but right now I shall spend this time reading more about your world, which is very intriguing I must say. Almost similar to my era, and with an even greater potential here, so much so that I would care to improve it myself."

"Th-thank you?..." Alphonse said, his voice dulled awkwardly as he comprehended Archer's ability to survive without food, water, or rest. Because he is a _spirit_. A _Heroic Spirit_ , a reincarnated person that was said to be an impossible goal for Alchemists. The exact nature of him, the other man name Caster, and Jeanne as well; a shadow of their real selves. It was still a confusing and frightening matter to be reminded of.

He resumed observing Archer, but the longer Alphonse looked at the man, the more awkward the young Alchemist felt - which he thought should be the other way around. He could not help but to stare quietly, fearing himself to be causing discomfort for Archer than he is for himself. Furthermore, why has Archer not said anything about Alphonse being awake this late. It was the one thing that made him all the more nervous, the anxiety of having to explain the reason, and even worse, he is not at all sure if the explanation for his condition was even _the truth_!

But Archer has not questioned him yet, which should be a relief, except for so long has he become accustomed to spending every night by himself that he honestly was not sure what to do with someone who is just as awake as he is. Naturally, he felt the urge to make conversation, however, since coming from the Fifth Laboratory, there was no enthusiasm left in Alphonse to make idle talk, but there were a few questions he wanted to ask.

"...Excuse me, Mr. Archer?"

"Mm." Archer responded, a simple answer that tells Alphonse he is listening.

"Uh. I'm sorry to bother you, but...well, I _sort of_ get that you're a spirit, and I was just wondering, um..."

The man waited as Alphonse nervously attempted to reach his question. "Jeanne told us that Heroic Spirits aren't actually... well, the _real_ person reincarnated. Is... that true? Are you really a copy of someone else's soul?"

"I am."

The unhesitant answer shocked Alphonse, given without lifting his attention from the book. When Alphonse sat there silently, stunned as he was that he forgot to follow-up with his next question, the man at last looked up from his book, startling Alphonse yet again. "Is that all?"

For a brief moment, the boy was mesmerized by the unique glow of the man's crystal blue eyes. But even though they glowed, they were not inhuman, they were indeed of a living person. And this living person admitted not having a real human soul.

"How can you tell?" Alphonse muttered, looking down to his crossed legs, his body clinked at his slight movement.

"I've known since the moment I was summoned," Archer said.

He had the chance to know since he came? But even then, the way he simply accepted this was incredible. How could he be so collected? Knowing what he was, and yet act as if it was nothing? If Archer really was to represent someone who have lived a life of his own, was someone who made a name for himself and possibly have done great things, then perish only to come back but not as your real self... How could anyone not care about something like that? How could he be undisturbed by this?

Would Archer be this way if he didn't know? What if he was told to have been a real person, only to find out later that he was never alive to begin with? Would he still be as calm as he is now? Would he not be angry or sad? Or see the cruel injustice of it?

It may have been for the best that Alphonse was not left alone for tonight, to have some form of distraction by conversing with someone, and keep him from drowning in this very fear and doubt that pegged the very questions he has for Archer.

"Doesn't that bother you? That you're not...real? I mean, not the real you, or..." He slapped the cheeks of his helmet. "Gah! I'm sorry, this is such a really personal question." Even for his circumstance, Alphonse should not have to drag someone else into sharing his mental crisis. He would never want anyone to go through this torment.

"No. It does not bother me." Another unflinching answer from Archer, his crystal blue eyes returning to the open book. "I understood my nature, but even if I am not the real man I once was, I am still who he is; what he believed, and what he desired. That man and I are the same, regardless if I am not the genuine half."

The casual remark left Alphonse amazed. The calm acceptance to his nature was actually admirable, and at the same time, envious. Alphonse wished that he could have that mind set, but he spent years believing himself to be a real person trapped in armor, waiting and searching for a way to get back his body - _if he ever had one_. If it is true that his brother is giving him a false sense of hope, that Winry and Granny Pinako had merely been pretending he was really part of their family, the memories of their mother were all completely _fake_...

It rocked him to his core at the thought that his love and grief for the wonderful mom, the woman he always carried with him as a loving son, was just another illusion implanted to convince him of his life. If he had his heart, he would clutch it in pain if it turned out that he _never_ had a mother, that he was _never_ part of their family, that _he_ was a fake puppet all along.

"...May I ask you something as well, young man?"

Dragging himself out of his nightmarish thoughts, Alphonse tried to speak calmly, "Sure. What is it?"

Archer closes the book. "Is something the matter?"

"Huh?" Alphonse lifted his head.

"I've noticed how troubled you seem to be," Archer elaborated. "Although I may not see your expression, it's rather obvious how deep in thought you are. Care to share what is on your mind?"

Archer noticed? Normally people would not be able to tell how Alphonse was feeling unless they could read his body, which also takes getting to know Alphonse for a considerable amount of time. This man was able to read his behavior so quickly, all the while he was focused on the book he was reading?

"Uh, well...I-it's nothing..." Alphonse lied.

Archer watched him for a moment, causing Alphonse to shift nervously under his gaze. "...I see." He knew it was a lie, but Archer chose not to press it. Some kind of disturbance has latched the boy made of armor's focus, but as curious as he was, it would be rather imprudent of him to ask directly, especially considering that this is his Master's brother. Youngest he deduced, since Alphonse sounded as so.

Another quiet moment that pressured the soul of Alphonse, even after Archer returns to his reading, gentle footsteps enter the room. At first, Alphonse thought it was Edward (the one person he felt the need to avoid for now), but one look and it was actually Caster. His grayish-blue hair was blacker in this mildly lit room, hanging over his left shoulder as he held a silver tray, carrying a tea set and small sweet snacks on the side. "I've made tea and found a bag of treats for us, would you like to have a cup, Archer?"

"I would very much. Thank you," Archer reached for a teacup as soon as Caster settled the tray on the small foot table. Such a normal exchange, even between Servants of the same Master, would be somewhat absurd; that there is already a level of friendly association between what may be eventual opponents if they intended to be the last few Servants in the war - it would also not be above certain Servants to poison their potential enemy. But between these two Servants, there is no point in having social hostility even if they were enemies, and they silently agreed with this.

"Is it really wise of you to remain manifested?" Archer asked. "Our Master isn't quite an adept Magus, though I'm not quite familiar with how on par a Magus would be with an Alchemist."

"Oh they're interestingly different," a small bubble of enthusiasm melded with Caster's soft voice. "They do share the same ability to manipulate energy. But in our Master's case, he as an Alchemist would not know how to transfer that energy to us. I've already taken precaution that will not strain our young friend and Master. As long as I do not perform anything excessive, our friend will be fine. I will make certain of that."

Lifting his cup, Caster inhaled the warm fragrance of what he brew, "There is quite a difference between a Magus and an Alchemist, but they do share the same ability to manipulate energy. In the case of Alchemists, they need to grasp something solid like the ground, but they may also use liquid, grass, perhaps even the smallest of particles like smoke or rain drops. I've paid quite a close attention to the information of this country I was able to read during the summoning. Truly fascinating."

"You might want to have a look with this book then," Archer offered the text in hand to Caster. "It delves into this country's understanding of Alchemy in further dept. Although, I suppose it's unnecessary, as we are in the presence of an Alchemist after all."

Suddenly their attention was now on Alphonse, and the youngest Elric instantly wanted to shrink away. They were not necessarily bad people, even as strangers, they were very helpful when that snow storm took over a part of Central, it was just that Alphonse was not feeling his usual self. But he supposes that if they are curious about Alchemy, he can afford to discuss it for a while. Not like he could get tired any time soon.

"Ah yes. I was hoping to personally question you and your brother," Caster addresses Alphonse. "If I recall correctly, your brother called you Al?"

"Y-yeah. Short for Alphonse, but you guys can call me Al."

"Al then. If you would be willing to inform us, what is the extension of an Alchemist's ability here?"

Alphonse took a moment to consider, and answered to Caster. "Well, it's like you said, we could manipulate matters of anything solid, trying to use Alchemy with water might be a little trickier, but it can be done if only to purify it. Freezing liquid is also possible, and even the smallest particles. People could even use elements like Fire and Ice. But for smoke or rain, maybe even snow, to try using Alchemy against that would be too dangerous, since you could get caught up in it."

He then added, "There's also the threat of a rebound if you don't perform Alchemy carefully, a rebound is essentially when Alchemy goes horribly wrong and the matter in your body could get mutated if the process of deconstructing and reconstructing is unstable. But really skillful Alchemists could use Alchemy to help heal people's bodies."

As well destroy them; just as the Freezing Alchemist and the State Alchemist Killer Scar have done. "Generally though, not all Alchemists would know everything I just said. A lot of them have a preference, like with doctors and construction workers. But every Alchemists should be able to manipulate the matters from the earth, even if they don't do it often."

The Caster was listening intently, his eyes glistening no matter his calm demeanor, it arose a feeling of pride within Alphonse for his knowledge in Alchemy, even nullifying his depressing thoughts. "It warms my heart to see how much this world has embraced this ability," Caster said, smiling. "Is that all?"

Alphonse shifted his body, "Not really... We're still developing Alchemy, to see what else we can do. And... sometimes, that would lead to some bad stuff." He lowered his head, "Sometimes, people would use other people's lives if it means furthering their research. There are some who tried to reanimate the dead, a forbidden taboo among Alchemists."

"I have heard..." Caster said softly, "And by using other people's lives, this includes the discussion about the Philosopher's Stones?"

Alphonse slowly nodded.

"...If I may ask, why were you and your brother seeking that stone in the first place?"

At that, the youngest Elric froze. He avoided looking at both Caster and Archer. "U-uh... well... we heard about it... and, well, w-we were hoping that it could help us, with our Alchemy! But then... um... well, you know..."

Caster's eyes softened with a gentle emotion. Putting down his cup with a quiet release, he asked in a kind voice, "Young man... What happened to your body?"

Loud clanks of shock was released from Alphonse as he sat upright, "H-h-how did you know about...?!"

"Ah, so you've noticed as well, Caster?"

Alphonse snapped his attention to Archer, "W-what?! Even you?! How?!"

The man in navy blue raised a finger to his ear, "Archers like myself are very keen in other ways than just their sight. I listened how you walked, and your armor always echoes without the shift of human weight, which can only be if it's empty. Am I right?" A rhetorical question, Archer knew how right he was.

There was no response, Alphonse only stared. _He heard the weight inside his armor and thought it was odd?_ How in the world would anybody be able to tell with just that?!

"Frankly, there was something strange about you that I couldn't help but pay a closer attention," Archer added, "For instance, when we were in battle, you were very mobile no matter how heavy that armor must be. Even for a strong person, you were strangely light on your toes, and not a single muffled sound of a muscle pressing against the platted metals as you were dodging, leaping, and fought with your body alone."

"You also seem very determined to wear this armor even while inside," Caster joined. "And haven't so much as removed your helmet no matter how warm it is becoming - we're not bothered by the temperature but even we could tell it would be uncomfortable to having something worn that would only suffocate the wearer, if slightly."

"It would be understandable if you did not feel comfortable to show your face in front of us, yet you would spend your time here with us rather than retire to your bedroom despite how late it is," Archer followed up. "It's as if you are reluctant to cause too much of a disturbance to remove your armor and go to bed or sleep on the couch, or perhaps it was the fact that you _could not_ remove your armor at all, and would rather stay in one place to cause less noise so not to wake up your brother or the neighbors."

"You haven't eaten, had any water, or excuse yourself to the restroom all night."

"You never breathe. There was not an air of life from you no matter how quiet this room becomes."

"I would think sitting in that position for hours would eventually become uncomfortable for you," Caster spoke his observation that was conducted while he was in the kitchen, "Yet when you are not engage in conversation you were as still as a statue."

"And your eyes glow," Archer directly pointed out. "I can understand how people, who do not look carefully, would mistake them as a faint shine of your pupils, but that isn't the case now is it?" A smirk comes into place as Archer intertwined his fingers like he just declared a winning move for a game board. Caster merely glanced at him with a nod to his very prominent point before returning his patient gaze to Alphonse.

With just these clues and a working mind of logical theories; in just one night, Archer and Caster easily came to the same conclusion that the strange body hiding underneath the armor, was the realization that "Oh, his armor _is_ his body."

It was an incredible account of what they have taken note of within a few hours, neither Alphonse or Edward would even consider all the subtle signs that revealed Alphonse's state unless they were with highly acute senses and great observational skills. But the truth was, these mere hints of Alphonse's abnormal state were nothing to applaud these man for uphold their degree of intellect and analysis. Or so Archer and Caster would claim.

They simply noticed, and they thought about it. That was all there was to it.

Alphonse sat there in silence. Stunned, and admittedly embarrassed that he had unknowingly been carrying so many signs that there was something very off about him. For one thing, he hadn't expected Archer and Caster to be awake at this time, and another thing, he never expected either of them to be so attentive, that they were able to figure him out within one night! He's honestly shocked that no one else caught up to the hints that these men were able to catch, _he_ wasn't even aware of the hints that revealed his secret so much.

"You should be more cautious and aware of yourself if you wish for no one to find out that you have more than a strange body," said Archer. "Our theory that your armor is actually your body is just that. Your gasps alone confirmed our thoughts, so do take care that even if another person were to guess correctly, try to restrain yourself from acting surprise."

"R-right..." Alphonse agreed with Archer. He should be more careful, but putting that aside for later, Alphonse is now in a predicament where these men are aware of his secret, and Caster wishes to know how this came to be. Alphonse did not know how to go about this, if he tells them, then they will know that he and Edward attempted Human Transmutation. He was hesitant to tell them the truth. When he had told Rose - _Jeanne_ , the "truth" of his condition back in Liore, it was because he was caught red-handed, his empty shell was exposed in her presence, and he felt the need to tell her the "truth" because he wanted her to understand.

She spoke her beliefs of people coming back from the dead as a likely thing to happen. Hearing that, he wanted to say that it may not be as possible as she thought it would be. He was ready for her to hate him for telling this. After hearing Cornello's speech about her losing her fiancé, Alphonse was afraid that Jeanne was willing to do anything to bring back her lover, even if it meant believing a comforting lie for a short time, or worse, she would make the same mistake Edward and Alphonse have.

Alphonse was relieved that she was able to break free from Cornello's lies, but what if she hadn't, and what if she still believed that her fiancé would come back somehow? It was one of the reasons why he told her what he had done, that it was not worth the effort and suffering of a failed transmutation that caused Alphonse to be what he is now... At least, that was what he thought.

His change of attitude was not only due to Barry's influence, but finding out about the Holy Grail War, rituals of imperfect souls of the deceased... what if he's part of that? What if he was just like these Servants? Or... what if he was those familiars that he saw?

He thought back to the battle, where he and the others confronted the familiars; golems as Caster called them. What if Alphonse was just like those? A golem, merely following the commands of the person who created it. To see those creatures for himself, to hear about the summoning of the Servants, the poisonous doubt Barry the Chopper implanted in his mind began to fester and contaminate everything he has ever known. Questioning everything to a maddening degree.

"Young man?"

Alphonse flinched, leaving behind his troubling thoughts though they remained very close.

Caster sensed that there is a deeper issue with Alphonse, and wanted to investigate. Nosy is what some people may call him, but Caster is only a man who wanted to help people, either ailments of the body, or the mind. "Would you be willing to tell me how you became this way?"

Archer watches without saying a word, just as curious as Caster, but also noticing the solemn behavior of their Master's brother. A moment passes, both Servants waiting patiently, Alphonse at last spoke.

"I don't know."

Caster leaned forward by a half an inch, "You don't remember?"

"No... I... I remember. At least, I think it was a memory, but..." Alphonse clasped his hands together, the shifts of metal clicking. "I don't know if it's real or not."

Would these men be able to tell him? Could they somehow confirm this fearful thoughts. If they could, Alphonse almost did not want them to, but he also did not want to avoid knowing for certain. However, how much could he truly trust these men? They said that they follow Edward as their _Master_ , summoned as Jeanne had explained, and by her claim and Edward's reaction, it was an accident. But was it?

What if Edward was pushed into a corner and decided to do something that would save him? If Alphonse was truly a puppet, then what if Edward had _summoned_ him in order to save his own life after the failed Human Transmutation? What if Edward did something like that again, except unlike before when Edward was still very young and have only just graduated from Izumi's teachings, he was now able to make a perfect replica of a human body with an imperfect soul? Edward was in a lab after all, he had the available materials to do what he needed and _could_ do. If Caster and Archer are his "new puppets," what if they are trying to keep Alphonse from knowing the truth?

But if Archer and Caster were working for his "brother," why would they be asking Alphonse what happened to his body? Did they really wanted to understand and help Alphonse, or could they be seeking to confirm if he still believes the memories he has, to see how suspicious he is of them? Even if that were the case, Edward could never have anticipated the _Command Seals_ or the _Holy Grail War_ , something that Jeanne, a girl they just met over a month ago, had told them about. A war which Edward was undoubtedly baffled to hear.

Would he really use the excuse of an imperfect Human Transition, the summoning of the Servants, just to fool Alphonse? Somehow, Alphonse does not think Edward would go that far, or else it would mean to involve Jeanne, Father Kotonelm, the Seals, Archer's and Caster's powers, and everything that happened this night. No matter Alphonse's doubts for his "brother," it is too convoluted to be a possibility, and even Edward, for his incredible Alchemy, could not achieve that much or else he would know how to create something close to a homunculus, which Alphonse knew he couldn't, because neither of them knew how to.

So does this prove that Caster and Archer can be trusted? That despite their connection to Edward by the Seals, they weren't actually his puppets and follow their own will? Alphonse is still unsure, but he desperately needed answers. He needed someone to tell him, even if they were strangers who may be working for the one person he is terrified of finding out who he really is to Alphonse, he needed to know somehow, in any way.

Alphonse did not answer Caster's next question for him to elaborate. Instead, Alphonse asked his own question, "Mr. Caster... Could you tell if I'm anything like you and Archer?"

An eased reaction of surprise from Caster. "Anything like us? What do you mean?"

Alphonse tried to explain, tightening the grip of his clasped hands. "I have memories of a loving home, a wonderful mother, a good brother, supportive friends and neighbors. But... I don't know if they're actually _my_ memories. I don't know if I'm actually... human."

The soul of Alphonse shuddered, "I remember Ed as my brother. I've _known_ Ed as my brother. But... I don't know if I'm really _his_ actual brother. Or if I'm anybody at all. When we were kids, we did something bad with Alchemy, and I ended up losing my body. I would have died, but then Ed saved me by transferring my soul to this set of armor you see now. I can still recall every detail of what happened, but... I don't know if what I remember are right, or if they're real."

Caster cupped his chin in thought, bypassing his scientific intrigue of transferring a soul to an object done by a child. He listened to Alphonse's every word as the boy continued, "It's been so long since I felt anything. Even though I have memories of my home, I can't completely remember the experience of it. Not the smell and taste of my mom's cooking, not even her hugs. At first, I thought that this was a type of amnesia, like how a person who went blind started forgetting the faces of their family and friends. But now I'm wondering if the reason why I can't remember the experience, was because the emotions of what was felt in those memories couldn't be implanted. I even wonder if maybe... I'm like those familiars we fought with in that storm."

Archer lowered his gaze to the trembling hands of Alphonse, "You are unsure if you are a real person." The boy's question of Archer's nature as a Servant was not just out of curiosity, it was for himself. "Boy, if you had this thoughts, did you not consider asking your brother Edward?... Or is it that you feel he is responsible for your supposedly fabricated memories."

The no response was his answer, and Archer connected the dots. Alphonse believes he was created by his own brother, was implanted memories of their childhood to fool the boy in armor of his existence as a human who lost his body, and carried on for however long he was stuck in this form. "If that is what you think, what reason would Edward have to do so?"

"...The reason we were looking for the Philosopher's Stones was so that we could get our bodies back. My body, his arm and leg. You must have already noticed his automail, he has one for his leg too. When we... made the mistake of recklessly playing with Alchemy without considering the repercussion, Edward's arm and leg was ripped from him. He was bleeding, and he would have died if I wasn't there to help him."

Alphonse continued, "We've been travelling for years now, trying to find a way to get us back to normal. But I'm wondering if his promise to me, to get my body back like he said he would, was just something he made up so that I could help him get his limbs back, and be there for him whenever we end up in trouble and have to fight our way out."

"All for the sake of his limbs?" Archer could not help but reveal an amused look. "Please do not take my reaction to heart. I can understand how he needed someone to save him from death, but I find it odd that he would go through the trouble of having a self-aware _familiar_ around all just to retrieve his arm and leg. If that's all there is to it, Caster could simply make him new limbs right now. Isn't that right Caster?"

Alphonse flinched, "Wait... what?" He looked to Caster, "You could create artificial limbs?"

"It is something I could do, yes," Caster admitted, "I can ask him if he would want that, but putting that aside for now, Al, I'm afraid you have me at a complete lost."

"Huh?" Still processing that the man in front has the ability to create artificial limbs, Alphonse could only ask dumbly.

"If Edward wanted someone to help him find a way to retrieve his limbs, he would not need to go so far as to create a sentient familiar, then promising said creation to retrieve his body out of personal gain. If he has that sort of skills, then he could have easily made an obedient familiar that does not question its own will. I may have only known him for one short night, but I do not believe he would be so illogically cruel. Do you?"

Alphonse paused in thought. It was true, if Edward wanted someone to help him, why would he go through the trouble of giving Alphonse sentience? It would make sense that he needed to so that Alphonse would better adjust to society, passing off as a human by behavior alone, since the creation of artificial souls is an illegal act in Amestris. But to keep making sure Alphonse isn't found out seemed so much work. Why _would_ Edward go through all that trouble if he could have done something else instead?

No matter how Alphonse thought about it, Edward was not cruel. The supposed truth of Alphonse' condition may have been the one cruel thing he could have done, but outside of that, behind his rough personality was a genuine consideration for others aside himself. If all that was an act, then he had Alphonse, and everyone else completely fooled. But if there was thing Alphonse knew for certain, Edward could never pretend his distraught over Nina, even swearing to save the sweet little girl by giving her the Philosopher's Stone so to revert her back to her original self. No matter how many times Alphonse envisioned it, he cannot see Edward as an intentionally cruel person. On accident perhaps, but never causing people harm for the sake of it... unless it was Mustang, just to riled the Flame Alchemist for the sake of it.

"You are not like us, that much I can tell," Caster suddenly said. "I cannot say if your memories are indeed fabricated, but as Servants like myself and Archer, we can distinguish the presence of Servants, and that of humans. Even Assassins cannot truly conceal their nature if we were close enough to touch and confirm."

He stood up as he spoke. Alphonse watches him with unease wariness until Caster knelt beside him, he carefully observed as Caster not too slowly, but not too quickly, raised his hand and gently settled his fingers on Alphonse's arm. "Being this close to you, I feel the presence of a living being with a genuine human soul. But hearing your concerns, I have to wonder, and I hope you will take this to consideration. If your brother did truly create you, implanted fake memories and claimed you human, would the memories and feelings you have towards them mean nothing to you?"

"Mean nothing to me...? Of course they meant something!" The volume in Alphonse's voice rose. "That's why I'm scared to death that they could have been fake all along! That-"

"But would you rather not have them in the first place?" Caster questioned softly. "I can only imagine the pain you must feel, the fear that you have. But would you truly wish the chance to discard all of the experiences you have adventuring with your brother. Even if you question that he may not be your "real" brother, was he not as caring as a loving sibling would? If your fears turned out to be true, we cannot be certain what the circumstances were for him to do such a thing. But even if your happiness and life are an illusion, are you not satisfied to have that sort of experience? The joy which only a certain number of people in the world could only dream of? Can you honestly say that you would forget your cherishment of the moments you loved and enjoyed, and say that they mean nothing to you."

Forget how he felt? The moments when he experienced happiness and known love, to be loved and to feel it for his family... He... How can he possibly disregard it all? He wanted to, of course, he was slowly growing angry at the thought that Edward had been keeping this from him all this time, that he wanted to suppress his never ending sadness for his supposed memory implant. But to say he felt nothing for them now, that they truly meant nothing to him anymore... It was much harder than he wanted it to be.

There were so many good memories he had when he recalled having a human body. _Good_ memories, even if their legitimacy are put into question, no matter how or what he does, he couldn't say that they were nothing, because they did mean something to him. They were his precious treasures, the one that kept him going through the lonely nights and seclusion of other people's physical delights.

Alphonse could not find a proper response. Deeply contemplating Caster's words. Would he had been alright to say that, even if he was a fake, he had existed to endure those moments of happiness, and... he was okay with that?

The truth of the matter is... he might just be okay with it. It would take a considerable amount of time, but... He loved the people he knew for all these years. The Curtis, Mustang, Riza, Hughes, _Nina_... He would never dare think that he wanted to see them all as nothing but strangers to forget. But that wasn't the issue, not the main one at least.

The real issue that he wanted to know was if Edward had _lied_ to him this entire time.

"Of course, you can always confront your brother about this, if you are truly so plagued with questions that demand answers," Archer suggested. "But that is all up to you; whether you wish to know a _plausible_ truth, or be content with what you hold dearest."

It was a moment of Alphonse looking down at the floor, his behavior that dictate his emotions unreadable, but for the Servants, they felt they have said enough to put the boy's mind at ease. They have mostly cleared the dark clouds that shrouded Alphonse's judgment and paranoia. They understood that even if they told the boy that it would be highly unlikely for Alphonse to be a puppet created by their Master, Alphonse would still be in disarray, and he may even see the Servants as accomplices to the supposed deceits of Alphonse's existence.

They cannot say if Alphonse's suspicions rung true, only just recently meeting the Elric brothers, they cannot be completely sure. But it was not a problem that personally concerned them, this is a matter Alphonse alone must register, cope with, and decide what to do next. What will become of this, the question of trust and a peace of mind, will be left in Alphonse's care.

"...Thank you, both of you. You guys gave me a lot to think about."

Paracelsus smiled at Alphonse, "I'm always willing to help." He stood up, "Please, do not be afraid to come to me for any reason, even if it's to talk about any topic."

With that, he left the room. To where, neither Alphonse or Archer asked to ascertain, Alphonse was too deep in his mind, but calmer than before, and only a hint of nervousness. Archer thought to watch over the boy, but considered that the boy may need time to himself. "If you wish to be alone, I will leave."

Alphonse looked up at Archer. It seemed the boy actually wanted that and Archer prepared himself to depart into his spirit form, but then Alphonse shook his head, "No. It's okay. I know there's a lot going on with me, but... It's fine if you'd stay."

Archer raised an eyebrow, finding it peculiar that Alphonse did not want seclusion. "Are you sure? I would think having anyone around would be somewhat unwanted right now."

Alphonse twiddled his thumbs, "I... since I've been in this armor, I don't ever need to sleep. It... can get really lonely every night."

It has been too long since someone has ever hold a conversation this late at night. Aside from what he has to think about from here on out, he could not fight the urge of having the presence of a waking person be nearby and in sight. It was a unexpected change to his nightly routine, and he found himself not minding it so much.

The expression of Archer dulled into a neutral gaze. His true thoughts unreadable. "...If that is what you prefer, I would be glad to keep you company." He stood up to pick out another book from the shelf, "And if you feel the need to converse some more, do not hesitate to spill your thoughts. I shall not only provide you excellent feedbacks, but _my_ excellent feedbacks."

Alphonse chuckled at that. The Archer smiled and began reading the new book once he returned to his chair. Alphonse then grew quiet, he has a long night to contemplate, but if there was anything good from this, it was that he was not suffocating himself with his own fears.

And that the pattern of loneliness was completely broken.

* * *

The Caster of the Fullmetal Alchemist quietly walked across the at a calm pace. His thoughts dwelling on the conversation between him and Alphonse, and his heart-filled sympathy for the boy. So that is the reason for their interest in the Philosopher's Stone, more specifically, the Philosopher's Stone of this world.

There was a stone with that name that exist in the world he was from, informally known also as the Photonic Crystal. It was a stone that all Magi and Alchemists professed to be a concentrated work that accomplishes the closest feat to immortality, first conceptualized by the Father of Alchemy, and then completed by the hands of a worthy predecessor who studied the Father of Alchemy's research two centuries after the death of the founder of Alchemy.

But no matter how much people applauded and marveled at the completed work done by the legendary physician turned alchemist, their compliments held no comprehension to the absolute potential the Philosopher's Stone of his world could have been. The absolute result of the stone as intended by Nicolas Flamel failed to be completely rendered by an admirer of his work. Yes, the "finalized" stone provided excellent effects, but it stilled lacked something that the alchemist who completed the stone was unable to improve upon, and so what he ended up completing was nothing more than a prototype of "the potential stone of exponential energy."

Still, it provided an exceptional level of effects; a counterfeit immortality that people of his era and afterwards, would have trouble to completely re-create it even when they have the recipe of its creation. They would not be able to completely understand how the process is formulated, something which Nicolas Flamel and another "prominent Alchemist" would be able to understand. But the vision Nicholas Flamel had for the stone was not reached, the stone was not simply supposed to be a counterfeit of immortality, but a True Ether with magical properties comparable to the True Magic from the Age of the Gods.

A wide variety of capabilities; the ability to manipulate everything in nature, either physical or something more ethereal. To transmute a physical substance into another, much like how this world has the same process, except with the ability of a "True" Philosopher's Stone, impossible transmutations could be conducted.

Changing a rock into water, or air into gold. Foregoing all limitations of both Alchemical and Magecraft. Instant casting of high-level magical operations that usually requires a long-winded chant with a stock of magical gems to compensate one/fourth of the incredible power the greatest of Wizards are only heard to be capable of unleashing, and perfected duplication of spells that the user was previously unfamiliar with, but then mastered it after witnessing it once. Nicolas Flamel's Philosopher's Stone is capable of replicating power akin to a _Noble Phantasm_ , within the limitations of the Noble Phantasm's nature.

If the alchemist who have "completed" Nicolas Flamel's Philosopher's Stone successfully constructed a counterfeit immortality, then the "absolute completed" version of Nicolas's envisioned stone bestow a temporary side-effect of _true_ immortality.

Caster cannot distinguish if the vast difference in power between the Philosopher's Stone of this world, and the stone from his world, are somehow on par with each other. Yet after a consideration, he concluded that it would take more than a group of human souls to compete with Nicolas' ideal project. While the stone Caster is capable of creating would have enough power to reanimate the dead, it does not return the soul of the deceased, and at a chance that it could replicate the soul, it would last only for a short time, which even then, the person would not be the same or in the best of state. His Philosopher's Stone was not capable of "tangling and untangling" reality, which is what the power of Nicolas' Philosopher's Stone is capable of.

Caster cannot say for sure if his imperfect stone will bring back the body Alphonse has lost. If it was possible, Caster would be more than happy to construct a human body for Alphonse' soul to transfer to, but the risks were too worrisome. Alphonse's soul may not be compatible with whatever body Caster could create, simply because it was not the boy's actual body. A rejection between the soul and the foreign body could happen, and Alphonse's soul may end up vanishing in that instant.

If the brothers are correct that the Philosopher's Stone of this world could accomplish that much, then it must be a powerful object indeed, while his Philosopher's Stones are only capable of an incomplete miracle, and he is not sure if it will be enough to answer Alphonse' desire for his real body, especially consider that the laws of this world's reality may differ from the laws of his world. Caster will need to study this world's Alchemy further in depth, an exciting process as if he is learning the practice all over again. But combining with his knowledge and the knowledge of this world, he may be able to help not only Alphonse, but the brother as well; Caster's Master, and new friend.

But this will require heavily extensive research. Whether Edward will decide to relent his Seals or not, Caster will have to find any spare time. For this, he will need a lab to begin his work, but considering that the brothers are travelers, he will need to somehow create a territory that was also mobile. Perhaps a wooden cart, or some advanced vehicle? Something to carry his work as he travels. But firstly, this challenge will require an extra set of capable hands. Yes, that is what must be done.

Paracelsus Van Hohenheim will need himself a personal assistant.

* * *

 **The return of a calm night lay endless contemplations...**

 **Author's Note: Hello my lovely readers! Thank you for reading my updated chapter after waiting for so long! It's the season of summer and hopefully I'll be posting more often! But I can't make promises since for me, this summer I'll be somewhat busy.**

 **/.\**

 ** _To SpookyIvy_ : There'll be plenty of interactions with the Elric brothers and their Servants, and it'll develop from acquaintances learning to trust each other and understanding their powers, to a Teacher/Student type of relationship, and then finally an unbreakable bond that binds them like family. **

**\\./**

 **Now here's something I need to tell you guys. Originally, this chapter was titled differently and was much longer. As I wrote out the chapter, it was reaching passed _30,000 words_! So what you've just read is actually one part of what was supposed to be a complete chapter (I've underestimated the amount of story I'm trying to fit once again!).**

 **Since I didn't want to exhaust you guys to read over _30,000 words_ , I decided to cut the chapter into two parts and will post the second part next time. If I by chance finish writing the next part by the weekend, I'll more than likely post it on Monday so that plenty of people will have enough time to read this chapter before being bombarded with over _20,000_ words that will definitely come soon (But who knows? I might underestimate how much I can cram in the next chapter again and it'll end up being a three-parter. We will eventually know once the next chapter is posted).**

 **So by next chapter, there will be more about the supposed "Third Faction" that I promised all of you with. Here's me praying I don't end up making three parts of what was supposed to be one chapter. It forces me to break my promises to you guys of what I always tell you to look forward to and what will be happening, and I don't think this will be the last time... *Cries***

 **Thank you again for reading. Have a wonderful and blessed day!**


	14. The New Faction

Chapter 14: The New Faction

The light of morning greeted Central, a peaceful new beginning of a new day. Although the military remained on high-alert, surrounding their city with soldiers to guard the perimeter, an uplifting sense of life crosses the streets once more, and the people of Central gradually returned to their everyday routine; hoping to forget the fright of last night.

Jeanne gently awoke from her slumber. Rising from the bed, she stretched her limbs and removed herself from under the sheets, then knelt before the bedside to perform her morning ritual; a loving prayer to God, her hope for a more tranquil day for the sake of Amestris and all elsewhere. After a few minutes of this, she concluded with a quiet "Amen" and started for the bathroom. A cold morning shower would do well to further awake her senses, a mundane step to what will eventually lead to her decision concerning the Elric brothers.

Jeanne had never quite known the feeling of a shower, she imagined that it must be like being pelted by the rain endlessly until the handle is turned the other way. Embracing the new experience, she shrieked at the unexpected velocity of the shower's brittle coldness, and immediately switched to taking a normal bath instead.

 _I don't think I'll ever be used to this level of advancement_. Her way of life was much simpler and plain, nothing to do with complex vehicles or powerful showers. Her way of life was to have her feet on the ground, and that was all Jeanne will ever ask for. Rose understood her feelings, and could not agree more.

After her bath, Jeanne heard a knock on the front door. Wearing her white bathrobe, she went across the living room to answer. Lieutenant Ross was standing on the other side of the door, and upon seeing her, Jeanne smiled, "Good morning lieutenant."

Maria Ross saluted to Jeanne, "Good morning Jeanne. Ed was thinking about going out to eat, would you like to join us?"

The girl had noticed a little hunger beginning to seep in. She nodded, "I would be happy to come along. Let me get dressed and I'll be with you as soon as I can."

"Take your time. I'll be right here."

Jeanne turned around and left for her bedroom. Once clothed in Rose's simple outfit of a white dress, black slippers, and a new blue jacket Jeanne had purchased a week and a half prior to concealing her back and arms, she met the Lieutenant outside her front doorway again. Locking her door, they then went down the corridor to find the Elric's room, and where Sergeant Brosh should also be.

"Ed told us that Al wasn't hungry, so Sergeant Brosh will be staying here to watch over Alphonse," Maria explained. "There's a small restaurant just across the street, is there anything in mind you want to eat?"

Jeanne considered, "I don't know. But I'm sure whatever the restaurant has will be fine."

"We should bring some food back for Alphonse. I tried asking Al what he would like to save for later, but he kept insisting that he was fine. Do you have any guess of what he might like?"

That depends on what food he most certainly would like to eat the moment he regains his body. Otherwise, to bring food for him would be somewhat a cruel tease. Jeanne attempted a casual answer and not garner any suspicions, "Um... Maybe a biscuit, with strawberry jam?"

"Huh," Maria said. "Wouldn't have thought he'd be a light eater, with how big he is I mean."

Jeanne mutely nodded, refusing to add anything to that. "Have you or the sergeant heard from Central Command?"

Maria's expression strained, "We have. There's _a lot_ going on. Major Armstrong was able to contact us and was relieved to know that we avoided any serious harm. I told him about the two men who helped us out, and... well, mentioned that they were an extraordinary pair. I'm not sure if he got the hint, but he did say that he'll be on his way to meet with us as soon as he's relieved from duty. He's really happy to hear that you're around, Jeanne, and can't wait to see you again."

Jeanne's eyes softened in fond memory of the Major. "That's wonderful to hear." She too would enjoy meeting with her friend again and wondered how well was the buff, tall man with a bigger personality, and an even larger heart that could be so easily moved. She is thankful to know that he was safe and sound from the Red Faction's onslaught against the station, as were the rest of the soldiers and civilians.

And yet her heart was prodded with discontent. The illusive weather had not been the only threat to Central City, had that Saber of Red successfully unleash her Noble Phantasm, there would not have remained even a single remnant of the city. This undeniable fact troubled Jeanne incessantly, and it only solidified her standing; what must be done. She _must_ stop the Red Faction.

The issue lies over how to search for them. Even with her Spirit Board, the board pinpointed multiple Servants scattered across the country. Without knowing which Servant is who, she could only speculate the hidden base of the Red Faction. It could be that the Red Faction was somehow aware of her ability to track their Servants, or rather, not wishing anyone to locate them, and so ordered their Servants to move around the country, never having them in one place or they will be found out. Jeanne could only take note of a few places she found suspicious and will plan to investigate them some other time. But first, she must handle Edward's unusual situation, one that still left her bewildered.

"Good morning you two," Brosh greeted them at the end of the corridor, standing outside the Elric Brother's door. "Hey Jeanne, I managed to find your bag last night, and a few other stuff that was I figured might have been yours. I'll drop them off at your room later today, is that okay?"

"Yes! Thank you so much, sergeant. I'm very sorry for the trouble."

The sergeant waved his hand nonchalantly, "It wasn't any trouble at all. Glad to have helped! Ed's almost ready, he shouldn't take long now before he joins you guys." He yawned loudly, "Man, after last night, I'm surprised to have gotten any sleep!"

"Tell me about it, since you slept _most_ of your shift," Maria informed, showing her irritation and tired eyes. "I had to keep watch for both of us and for these kids."

"Oh... Sorry about that. Walking around the field might have taken a bigger wind out of me than I realized..." At Jeanne's guilt-ridden face, Brosh restated, "B-but it's okay! It's not your fault. We're used to working late hours anyway, it pretty much goes with the job."

"And after what happened, I'm getting the feeling that a lot of people are going to be working overtime," Maria presumed. "The military is practically on their toes, you won't know when an attack like last night might happen again." She turned to Jeanne, "Do you know what you'll be doing today? If the military knows you, our superiors would want to question you about what happened with that storm. They'll want to meet with us as well, including the Elrics."

Jeanne nodded, "I'm sure that the Fuhrer has heard of my arrival by now, but after what's happened, he could be too busy to see me at the moment. I should stay with you all until they reach me if that is alright with the both of you." Especially since she must still consider what to do with Edward's circumstance and how to help him out of it.

"It's fine with me."

Edward had walked out when he overheard the conversation, his hand that wore his white glove pulled the knob into closing the door behind him. "I know we can't expect any of us to avoid Central Command for long, so we have to be careful, and keep quiet about what we found out; the stone, what was in that lab. Until we figure out our next move or otherwise, you should stick with us."

Jeanne nodded understandably. Even though who ever within the government is a prime suspect with connections to what went on in the Fifth Laboratory, the Red Faction is a prime offender of the entire Holy Grail War. There is no avoiding the Blue Faction if they truly intend to oppose the Red, and so will need Jeanne's account of what she gathered from her battle against the enemy Servants. This will undoubtedly include revealing the True Names for every Servant of Red she had encountered. While a Ruler Servant vows to not break her neutrality, if there is a threat that must be declared to be above all regulations of the Holy Grail War, she as Ruler has the right to necessarily put aside her position and prioritize herself in ending the threat. Of course, if ever the situation prompts her to, she may also decide how to proceed with this.

Brosh stayed to watch over Alphonse who remained inside the room, and so Jeanne along with Maria and Edward left for the lobby to reach their destination outside. Just as the lieutenant has said, a diner was just across the street. The warm smell of eggs, pancakes, and bacon like a divine introduction at their entrance, causing Edward and Jeanne's stomachs to quietly growl with hunger. They found a table by the window and began looking through the menus given by the waitress for each to order their meals individually.

At the waitress's leave to offer them time for consideration, Edward then stated, "I should go ahead and give Winry a call. Here's me hoping she won't be too mad at me..."

"Are you going to visit Resembool again?" Jeanne asked. The thought of the wonderful place full of nostalgia and charm, as well the memory of her friend Winry, brought a sense of glee to her heart.

"I'm afraid that won't be possible," Maria shook her head. "Like I told you before, Jeanne. Our superiors would want to question us about what we've seen inside that storm. We can't leave unless they gave us permission to."

"Which is why I'm going to ask Winry if she can come here instead," said Edward. "She'll probably need to bring luggage in case she has to spend the night here in Central."

A cheerful smile bloomed in Jeanne's face. Oh, it would be wonderful to see Winry again! She prays that the mechanic is doing well. "Does Winry know how to find you here?"

Edward shrugged, "She knows how to get to Central, but she doesn't know the city that much. I'm trying to figure out how I can help her find us so she wouldn't get lost-"

Two large hands suddenly slammed against the window glass beside them. Completely taken by surprise, Edward and Maria shrieked while Jeanne immediately held onto the Fullmetal Alchemist, ready to defend him and retaliate against whatever had them scared.

"Edward! Lieutenant! And Jeanne too!" One look at the window and there they saw a hulking man, but a face so familiar that it erased their fear of a threat.

Edward instantly recognizes the man, "Major Armstrong?"

"It's you Major..." Maria breathed out her relief as she re-holstered her gun. "You caught all of us off-guard, sir." In fact, the Major might have actually frightened everyone else in the restaurant.

"Ah! Forgive me," Louise Armstrong apologized, his deep voice clearly heard through the window. "I'm just so happy to see you are all unharmed. After last night and hearing your involvement within that storm, I could only fear for the worst before I was finally able to hear from you, lieutenant. Especially when I learned about _you_ , Edward Elric..."

The large man glowered darkly through the glass, "Lieutenant Ross has informed me of not only your presence within that storm but a certain place that I remember ordering you and Alphonse not to go..."

Edward's body crawled with his own fear as he glanced around the restaurant, plenty of people present. "U-uh, M-major? This is probably not the best time or place to talk about that..."

"Don't think you'll get away that easily..." The Major walked for the entrance into the diner. Jeanne let out a breath, unappreciative for the scare, but nonetheless pleased to see the Major once again, having barely changed since she last saw him. She released Edward's shoulder and sat more calmly now.

"...You know, I'm not helpless."

Jeanne looked at Edward, confused.

"You don't need to act like my shield just cause I only have one working arm," Edward tells her, raising a questioning eyebrow at her.

"O-oh," somewhat flustered, the Holy Maiden's cheeks turned pink. "Um... Sorry, it was out of instinct."

Edward's brows lowered sourly, facing away from her as he submerged into his thoughts. Worried, Jeanne thought she had offended him and wanted to apologize again when the Major came in and joined their table, sitting next to Maria. Ordering himself only a cup of coffee, Armstrong tells that he was ordered to check on the Fullmetal Alchemist's health.

He was very happy to see Jeanne again, relieved to hear that she was helped out of her predicament within the storm after listening to Ross' and Edward's brief account. Ross then informed the major of the two men who helped them bear through the conditions of the abnormal winter, which Edward was mostly quiet about, saying only a few things such as being saved by those men when he was assaulted within the Fifth Laboratory by the - among many - strange creatures in human forms.

As Maria and Edward detail more of what transpired what the rest of the city could not see, Jeanne mulled over her own experience in meeting with the Red Faction. It is true without a doubt that the rogue team must be stopped, but she alone cannot arrest them or execute them if forced to. Even with her powers and Command Seals, she cannot do this alone. That was what she thought to be the most difficult part, but she was wrong.

 _Why was Saber of Red's seals not on me?_ She thought back carefully, recalling from the first confrontation with the destroyer, and Jeanne's attempt to cease her annihilating action, but all for naught. Her word did not hold power over Saber of Red, there was no connection that bounded Saber to Ruler via Command Seals. Jeanne _should_ have two Seals of every Servant summoned for the Fifth Holy Grail War, it was _impossible_ for there to be a single Servant she does not have a Seal for. And yet she could not find Saber's seal on her body. When she attempted to **command** Saber of Red into canceling the use of her Noble Phantasm, Jeanne attempted to seek out the two very seals that were the Saber of Red; simply two seals out of several others that were reaching towards thirty.

But not one pair of them were of Saber of Red, Jeanne was utterly, charismatically helpless in stopping **Attila the Hun** ; Destroyer of Civilizations, an enigma of existence, and such an enigma she truly was. Attila was most certainly a Servant, but was she ever a human in life? Jeanne cannot tell, and neither could the Holy Grail based on the information she gathered with her **True Name Discernment**. Her knowledge is solely based on the knowledge from the Holy Grail, and there was nothing the Grail could tell her that could explain this abnormal Servant and... the dumbfounded discovery of lacking that Saber's Seals.

Was there a loophole the Masters of Red have discovered? Something that will prevent the Ruler from having their Saber's seals? Are there other Servants among the Red Faction whom Jeanne also does not have authority over? Perhaps not all of them, but if Saber of Red is proof that there is one, then who else, and by how many? If that is the horrific truth, then being far worse at a disadvantage, Jeanne without leeway will be crushed by the Red Faction who will have no reason to hesitate. Perhaps that is the reason for their bold attempt to assassinate her, they have no reason to fear her but her other powers, and even her other powers are not as troubling aside from her **True Name Discernment** and **Noble Phantasms** , which can only support her at a limited amount.

There was no other way around this. She underestimated the severity of this war's anomaly no matter how much she comprehended since first coming to this world. Jeanne is in dire need of allies. She will have to declare the Red Faction to be a threat at the highest level. If she cannot have weight over the actions of the Red Faction's Servants, and the Red Faction will resume their terrorism and killing, then she has no other choice but to condemn them fitting as that of placing a **Designation Seal**. Now, the other issue lies in where she may find her most needed allies... Of course, the answer to this was so obvious, it might as well be staring right at her.

The Blue Faction has a useful amount of Servants and Masters, even if not by much, it is a tremendous start to usurping the tyranny of the Red Faction. Regardless of the Blue Faction's questionable alignment, their suspected connection to the Fifth Laboratory, the Philosopher's Stone, influence to the Overseer, and overall, the intrusion of the Amestrian Military into the Holy Grail War, Ruler must make the _correct_ decision. That the threat of the war and the threat against the people of Amestris must cease to be, by any means necessary.

Jeanne knew this logically, but in her heart, she could not actually bring herself to making the correct choice, simply out of the persisting feeling that it would not be the _right_ choice. Perhaps, if she had not met Tim Marcoh and found out what he was forced to construct. If she had not learned about the Fifth Laboratory, the Philosopher's Stone...

If she had not met the Elric Brothers, and involved herself for their sake, leading her to unravel certain events after certain events, then maybe she would have considered, and ultimately aligned herself with the Blue Faction if it means defeating the Red. But she could not now.

The Blue Faction has too many secrets she does not have complete access to. The truth to their purpose for this war was reasonable - but not the main reason. She could feel it, there was something more to their involvement in this war. And there were so many signs that explicitly tells her the Blue Faction are a team that speaks only half-truths, and hidden information that when she eventually - albeit accidentally - uncovered such a terrible secret, it placed them under a suspicious light.

Throughout her travel of over ten days, there has never been another Master of the Blue Faction, and even for that _one_ Master she did meet with - Kaere Shirigal, there was a small but apparent discomfort in her soul that was not at all due to the sight of his scarred face, but that the Magus Mercenary was hiding something truly devious. For her to feel this way while the Overseer claims the Magus Mercenary is a trusted paid ally, this could only tell her that the Overseer was either deceived, or he too is being deceptive. To her added displeasure, her gut tells her it was the latter, for he seemed to be the sort of man who cannot be manipulated easily. That it was the other way around for that _lonely and empty man_.

The Red Faction must be stopped, but if it means allying herself with a group that is plausibly as horrendous in action, then the point of her challenging the other group is meaningless. As Ruler, she will not overlook any crime by anyone, even if she alone must face the offenders. Even if it means her demise.

"You okay there Jeanne?"

The Holy Maiden raised her head. Edward held a mild frown of concern, she must have appeared rather upset.

Considering his question, she felt powerless, but at the same time, she never felt more resolute. No matter if she is only armed with her flag, her sword, and her faith. No matter if she alone will have to face both the Red and the Blue, she will not retreat and let either of them have their way with this country and its people. No matter if this world was not her home, no matter if by the end of the war she will return to her eternal rest, she will not leave the defenseless to fend for themselves. Nor leave the good soldiers she has come to know if only by a few, nor the friends she cares for with all her heart.

That is the way she is, and that is the way she is resolved to be, even if she was spat at and burned.

"I'm..." She stopped herself from answering. A light of hope flashed in her mind as she stared at Edward for a little longer.

 _There is another way,_ her mind said. _Edward's Servants... And if I could find other masters who are not allied with either the Blue or the Red, then... We could gather and fight alongside each other, a group of our own._

A faction of her own. A team under the flag of Ruler.

The rules of the Holy Grail stated that the Ruler Servant must be neutral, must never have a personal interest in the Grail, and must always assure stability in the Holy Grail War. The war has escalated beyond the limitations of Servants, a distinct sign of instability, an unimaginably disastrous one. Ruler cannot do this alone, therefore, following her privilege to declare necessary actions for the sake of returning order to the war, she must take advantage of the instability, and form herself a team that will assist her with her quest. For the sake of the ritual to commence without needless sacrifices of those outside this war.

She will need to meet and propose to independent Masters and their Servants, and to begin this, she must ask Edward to relent his persisting Seals _to her_. Not to the Overseer. She does not wish for the Blue Faction to expand their army that may be empowered with Philosopher's Stones. She will not allow them the chance to grow stronger so long as she breathes.

Jeanne is unsure if the Holy Grail will leave its interest in Edward after this, but perhaps relenting the seals a second time will make his self-exclusion of the war absolute. It was really the only way she could think of for Edward, and she will pray for it to work.

Edward looked at Jeanne curiously when she suddenly averted her eyes and sunk into deep thought, much like how he had when he thought over how many times she always felt the need to protect him. He didn't want her, or anyone to risk their lives for him and his brother. He would never forgive himself if something were to actually come out of it and the protector comes out severely harmed. He wanted to tell her as much, that she should look out for herself, and not risk her life for him anymore.

He called her by name once more, but she seemed so focused to whatever was in her mind, it was like what happened in Resembool when he saw her praying in the living room; the distinction of separation from the rest of reality, though this time she is more in tune with reality as her face scrunches with whatever has her entranced. He thought about waving his hand in front of her face or even poke her just to get a response, but then Maria spoke to him.

"Oh yeah! Didn't you say that you were going to call Winry, Ed?"

Edward turned his attention to the lieutenant, herself having concluded her verbal report of what happened inside the storm, much to Major Armstrong's increasing disbelief and awe.

"There's a phone right there on the wall," she pointed at the spot beside the window counter that showed the kitchen inside. "If your friend can get here using the train, I'll be happy to pick her up from the station."

"Oh? You're going to invite Ms. Winry here? I suppose that is for the best if you want your automail fixed soon," Major Armstrong said. "Lieutenant, it may be better that I should pick Ms. Winry up. I have grown close to her and her grandmother since our time in Resembool, I'm sure she'll be able to recognize me."

Edward found himself agreeing, setting aside his thoughts about Jeanne for now, "That's not a bad idea. Alright, I'm going to give her a call right now."

He stood up just as the waitress came with their ordered breakfast and coffee for the Major. Maria began to eat but paused when she saw Jeanne looking over her shoulder, following Edward until he reached the phone.

"Is something wrong, Jeanne?"

Jeanne realized her behavior and quickly shook her head, "It's nothing, just... It's been a while since I've seen Winry. I hope she and Pinako are doing well."

"I'm sure they are," the Major assured. "If Ms. Winry comes today, she'll be happy to see you again, Jeanne." He paused after a thought. "Would you like to join me in escorting her? I'm certain she'll be pleased to see two familiar faces."

Jeanne was surprised by the offer and considered heavily. She preferred to keep watch over the Elric brothers, but Edward has _two_ of his Servants now. She senses one of them spiritually hovering beside the Fullmetal Alchemist as he talks on the phone, while the other one stayed in the hotel, more than likely looking after the brother of his Master with equal dedication.

The danger was gone, but there was still this lingering eeriness that caused her to hesitate. But if there were to be another attack by the time Winry arrived, she and the Major would need assistance, while the Elric brothers would already have Archer and Caster to protect them. This is also a chance for Jeanne to evaluate a small part of Central to see if there was anything peculiar left by the Red Faction she might catch for herself.

It was an internal struggle, conflicted until finally, she made up her mind, "I would love to join. Thank you, Major."

 _"WHAT DID I JUST TOLD YOU?!"_

The Holy Maiden and the officers glanced over to the shouting. They saw Edward nearly throwing the phone receiver against the wall in shock before catching himself in time, and cautiously brought the receiver back to his ear while quietly apologizing to the other person at the other end of the communication line.

"Well, sounds like someone isn't happy about the trouble Ed barely got out of," Maria was impressed by the shout that must be from the friend name Winry, and immediately knew that the girl she never met is a good friend if she knew to scold Edward for his reckless behavior.

"You'll find Ms. Winry to be a wonderfully nice girl. I'm confident you and sergeant Brosh will like her!" The Major said in an upbeat tone, an opinion that has not wavered even after hearing the shout of fury from Winry. Jeanne smiled at the Major's enthusiasm and held sympathy for Edward enduring Winry's wrath.

* * *

The whistle of the train announced its arrival to Central, coming into a slow, complete stop. The station was quickly crowded more so than before as people aboard the train stepped off. Winry is among those people, carrying a case of spare automail parts on back, and a suitcase of clothes for when she is to spend the night in Central. "Finally here. That whole train ride left me entirely sore. I'll never understand how Ed and Al can ride in that thing every time they travel."

Stretching her limbs and rubbing her complaining hips, Winry eyed her surroundings. "Let's see... Ed said to look at the West Exit and I'll find someone familiar."

Among the sea of people moving in front of her, there indeed was a familiar person, surpassing the heights of the common people, a towering beacon that calls to Winry. Certainly, it would be nigh impossible to miss such a presence.

The automail engineer called back, "Major Armstrong! It's me, Winry!"

She ran towards the Major, but at closing proximity, another familiar person stood beside him. "Jeanne? Oh wow! I didn't expect to see you here!"

Jeanne clasped Winry's hands with equal eagerness, "It's wonderful to see you again Winry. How are you and Pinako?"

"We're doing great! Granny Pinako is back at home running the shop, but don't worry, she'll be fine with Den and the neighbors helping her. What about you? Are you stopping by Central?"

Jeanne nodded, "Yes, for a day or so. I came across Ed and Alphonse here. They're waiting for you at a hotel we're all staying at."

Armstrong offered his hands for Winry's luggage, "Here Ms. Winry, allow me to carry those for you. We'll guide you to where the brothers are. It shouldn't take us too long."

While grateful to give the luggage to Major Armstrong, Winry insisted to carry the case of automail parts herself. They began walking out of the station and for the parked car the major has left somewhere. "So how are those two idiot brothers doing?" Winry asked half-heartedly.

"They're doing well. Edward's automail, however, hasn't been working properly since..." Jeanne considered what to say, not wishing to cause Winry any worry.

"Since fighting with some bad guys, right?" Winry finished for Jeanne. "It's alright, Ed told me. I was a _little_ angry that he busted and ruined all my hard work again, but I'm actually happy to hear he isn't hurt. It just goes to show I can't always expect a guy like him to avoid any trouble."

 _Some troubles are impossible to avoid..._ Jeanne thought to herself.

"By the way, I heard something happened here in Central. Like there was some kind of battle?"

News traveled fast it seems. Major Armstrong glanced at Jeanne, Jeanne met his gaze before responding to Winry, "There was... But no one was seriously injured, thank the Lord. Ed and Alphonse were actually involved with what happened here, and from what I heard, they rescued a mother and her child from it."

"Really? That's great! Those brothers did some good after all!" Winry let her words slip out before realizing them and immediately corrected herself, "That sounded way too mean. I mean, I always knew Ed and Al are good people, more than willing to help others who needed it."

Jeanne very much agreed. "Yes, though sometimes, they can act too careless for their own good."

The barging decision to come to her aid in the face of over a dozen enemies. Albeit, Edward had additional help from the unexpected arrival of his Archer and Caster. Yet, she knew deep down, a frightening acknowledgment, that Edward would even go so far as to come to her side even if it were only him and Alphonse, or even if it was just himself...

"That's just how they are," Winry professed, a wide smile. "And no matter how stupid and reckless they can get, you can't really hate them for it."

Jeanne examined Winry's soft, reminiscing expression. A small weight settled in her chest, a pleasant glimmer in her aquamarine eyes, "You love them very much, don't you?"

Winry stumbled in her walk, looking back at Jeanne and her unexpected statement. "Uh, well... Sure. I guess I do..." The engineer paused, her face grew increasingly red. "I-I mean, as their best friend! You know? Family Love! Not like... _Love_ love. Y-you know? It's not like I have a crush on either of them, not like they had with me! Stop smiling like that!"

Jeanne covered her mouth to muffle her giggling. She eventually stopped at Winry's curious reveal, "They had a crush on you?" That wasn't at all a surprise to her, Winry is a wonderful person, but it caught Jeanne off-guard to hear that the Elric brothers equally liked Winry by that much. Oh dear, there must have been a great level of competitiveness between the boys.

"It was more of a childhood crush," Winry explained. "I turned them both down. We were kids and I wasn't interested in romance. Also, I don't date short guys. Uh... don't tell Ed I told you that. He knows, he just hates to be reminded of it."

The blunt reason that was like a cruel slap, Jeanne could only imagine how Edward must have dealt with this. _Horribly_ , she feared.

"I'm sure you had more than a few boys chasing after you, so you would understand right?" Winry winked.

The table of embarrassment have suddenly turned on Jeanne, the Holy Maiden stuttered out a rushed response, "E-eh? No! That's completely wrong! I've never even so much as had a boyfriend!"

"Huh? Seriously?" Winry found that to be an utter surprise. She would have thought someone as kind and as gentle as Jeanne would have a few love interests in her life.

"N-never! I may have had plenty of friends who were male, but it never went anywhere remotely romantic."

There were her childhood friends, and her comrades in arms, especially Gilles, but it never developed into something romantic even with their praises and undeserving admiration. It was true that occasionally there were... a few glances from the neighboring boys whom she grew up with and knew for so long. The possibility of romance _had_ existed in her life, the would-be future that would have been hers if she had made a different choice. It was not as if she was completely foreign to the idea of loving someone, marrying that person, and have a family together with.

But she had chosen God, even before she took up her flag, her heart and mind were mainly filled with her love for God. There had been no one but Him whom she could confidently say to have loved someone so greatly. By this, she had never known the true experience of _falling in love_ with a boy around her age. There had never been room in her life for such romance.

Jeanne did not hold any regrets for this; her love for God, her family, her friends and comrades, and the people of France, were all she could ever ask for. There was nothing more to desire beyond that, and she is perfectly content with this.

"...If you had _a lot_ of guy friends, it's probably safe to say that they thought of you _more_ than just a friend."

Jeanne did not fully comprehend what Winry has told her. "No, I... No, that's not... We were all close but they didn't..."

Winry patted Jeanne by the arm, she thought better, however, and chose to wrap and interlocked Jeanne's arm with her own, putting the Holy Maiden's flustered emotions to rest, "Just something to think about, and either way, I bet there's going to be a great guy waiting for you in your future."

The comment would have brought glee or embarrassment if Jeanne was any other girl, but it had the opposite effect. Her eyes softened solemnly, as only a spirit whose historical achievements has immortalized her name. A true immortal that will never know old age, for she died young. The image of the fearless sixteen-year-old girl and her flag, forever frozen in the minds of those who have seen her, and the paintings who have captured glimpses of her. There was no future for the eternally young spirit, only the afterlife.

"I'm sure you'll have a better chance than I would," was Jeanne's somber response, treasuring the hold of her dear friend as they resume their way.

* * *

The Elric brothers rested within their hotel room after the Fullmetal Alchemist had eaten his fill this morning. Edward walked into the living room to join Alphonse who hasn't moved from his spot since last night and attempted a conversation with his youngest brother.

"So... Archer and Caster huh? What do you think about those guys?"

Alphonse glanced at his brother before averting his attention to whatever random object there was in the room. "...They seem nice."

Edward waited for Alphonse to elaborate. When nothing came, he adjusted his sitting in the couch, hoping to alleviate the prolonging quietness between them, Edward tried again, "Kind of unreal, with everything that's happened. You know?"

"Yup."

...Edward scratched his head to rid the itch of awkwardness. "Hey, Al. Are you okay? If it's about the stone, don't worry, I'll figure something out."

Finally, he gained a reaction. Alphonse lifted his head, but he remained with only simple and short words. "How?"

The Fullmetal Alchemist struggled to answer, "I... I don't know. But I won't give up. We'll find another way, I know we will. I promise Al. I won't stop until..." He suddenly went quiet, a frown creasing his expression, fully capturing Alphonse's interest.

"Br...Ed?" Alphonse changed his call at the last minute. He watched in confusion as Edward got up from his seat and looked around the room, checking behind the curtains, the kitchen, and the hallway. "Uh...What are you doing?"

"Trying to see if those two _ghosts_ are eavesdropping on us again," Edward went so far as to check under the table.

"Um... I don't think you're going to find them like that." They both had witnessed how the Servants vanished after all.

"Can't be too sure," Edward said, glancing behind the chairs. "You'll never know if one minute they're not there, and then the next they're _suddenly_ there. I'm not taking any more surprises today."

Alphonse only sighed before retreating back to his thoughts. He has been considering for hours now, the right time to ask him, and how he _should_ ask him. He could demand answers upfront, or pretend that he suspected nothing, and keep moving forward. Unfortunately, Alphonse cannot follow the second choice. It has been eating him slowly, and though Archer and Caster helped tempered his fright to have more courage and face his worries head-on, Alphonse was still tremendously afraid.

But he had to know. One way or another, he had to hear it from Edward. He had to be assured, to hear it for himself if they were ever _real brothers_ from the start.

"...Hey, Ed-?"

There was a knock on their door. More of a bang actually. "Elric brothers! We have returned! Winry is here with us!"

"It's open!" Edward announced. The doorknob turned, Louis Armstrong and Jeanne walked in, followed by the Elric brothers bodyguards, and the unforgettable friend of the Elrics: Winry Rockbell.

"So here you guys are," Winry greeted the brothers. "Sure hasn't been too long since we last saw each other, I think this might be a new record."

Alphonse felt an urge to greet his long-time friend, but he kept silent. He did not share the same sort of comfort for Winry that he lacked for Edward. He had wondered how much has Winry kept from him just as Edward has.

"H-hey Winry, didn't expect you to get here pretty fast." Edward gulped nervously. "I guess you'll want to charge me an express fee for getting you to come all the way here."

"You know what, that's _not_ a bad idea!" Winry sincerely considered, adding to Edward's displeasure, before shaking her head side to side. "But I think I'll pass on that for today. After hearing what you guys did, saving a few people from what I heard happened in this city, I'll just charge you the usual rush hour fee with a _little_ bit of a discount. A girl like me has to afford herself to eat sometime."

"Yeah, sure, but do you really need _that_ much money?" Edward asked as Winry came to his side where his automail hung by the wrapping. The mechanic set down and opened her case, taking out her wrench.

"Well maybe if you quit destroying my automail, I would probably be a lot nicer to you!" Winry waved her wrench at Edward. Edward shrank away at the sight of her _weapon_ , doubting her words. "Have you been drinking your milk lately? You look like you got shorter than last time."

"I'M NOT SHORT!" Edward objected. "And there's no way in hell am I drinking that disgusting stuff! Do you know where they _come from_?!"

"EVERYONE KNOWS!" Winry shouted in exasperation. "They come from cows! It's not a big deal! You're going to be small and stunted forever if you keep making up excuses!"

"SHUT UP! I DON'T HAVE TO DRINK IT IF I DON'T WANT TO!"

Armstrong decided to step in, "Now that's no way to be! You're acting like a spoiled brat! You must have your daily dose of calcium!" The boy could very much end up looking like Louise Armstrong himself if he at least drinks one milk every day!

Maria agreed, "Every growing boy needs their milk."

"Come on Ed!" Denny encourages. "Girls like tall men! I mean, how can you expect anyone to date you?"

"It's more of an attitude problem than it has to do with his height," Winry corrected Denny's assessment, removing Edward's automail from it's wrapping support and examining the mechanical limb closely. "But that definitely could also be the problem."

Jeanne stood back, silently observing as best she could without breaking into another fit of giggles at the lively scene before her. What a welcoming change after the horror of the grand battle. She was also sure that these people needed this to better bear with the stress after everything they have endured. This moment of amusement and happiness is most wanted for all of them indeed.

"I'm being assaulted from all corners! Al! Help me out here!" Edward yelled for his brother.

Alphonse contemplated and reverted back to staring at his feet. "Sorry, you're dealing with this on your own."

The cold dismissal took Edward aback, it did not sound remotely good-natured or simple joshing. Even Jeanne noticed the strange behavior, glancing at the younger Elric. There was something truly bothering Alphonse, was it still about the stone? Edward could understand how hard it is to move on from it, but somehow, there is something much deeper happening to, Alphonse, more than he could see.

"Now hold still, I'm going to start taking apart some pieces." Winry began her work on Edward's automail arm, "It looks like your arm had something broke underneath the exterior. The palm is absolutely wrecked. Geez, what kind of fight did you get yourself into?" She was actually relieved to see Edward was not so seriously harmed.

"W-what kind of fight? Uh, well..." Edward scratched his cheek as he thought several reasons to throw at her. "J-just some pricks who thought they can mess around. Nothing... nothing too bad."

He did not want Winry to worry, but at the same time, he wanted her to know so that she can be careful, yet he was at a loss over how to explain exactly what happened. Jeanne would have a better chance than him, but he knew it would never sound so plausible or sane, and he worried that they will only terrify Winry than they would be trying to help her understand.

"I heard that there was a pretty bad storm too. The weather sure is getting weird lately," Winry removed another piece of the metal exterior. "Actually, there was something even stranger. I overheard on the train from passengers who have relatives here, and those relatives saw the storm and mentioned something about snow? Do you know what that might be about?"

Edward fidgeted, bouncing his human leg while his human fingers were twitching. He kept his composure so to not make his increasing panic apparent, but he was slowly breaking, "Uh... well... that was..."

He looked to Jeanne for help, but found her already in thought and was having trouble to decide the best way to answer, sensing Edward's dilemma very clearly. It was then that Major Armstrong intervened, "There was an illegal alchemical experiment conducted by one of the residents here. An explosion occurred and the result was a mist that released the snow-like substance. It reached quite a distance, spreading out to several blocks. It was around this time that, as Edward said, there were a couple of ruffians who thought to cause trouble and various vandalizing offense. Thankfully, despite the brief chaos, the military was able to take control, but the perpetrators escaped custody."

He added in a serious tone, "We are unsure where they are now, but it's believed that they all have left the city. So you must take great caution when you return home Ms. Winry."

"O-oh. I see. It's that serious..." said Winry, disturbed by the level of warning given by the Major of usually overexerting personality. "I'll be sure to be careful."

Jeanne nodded in gratitude to Armstrong. A wink from the Major, he then moved for the door, "Well, I should return to Central Command. I'll be informing our superiors of your condition and that you are doing well, Ed. If you're fully recovered, there's a chance they might contact you with awaiting orders."

Edward nodded in understanding, "Got it. Thanks for the heads up."

"It's my pleasure. Take good care, everyone." The Major departed, leaving the brothers, their two friends, and the officers in the room. Winry resumed her repairs as she converses with the brothers' bodyguards, and hear stories of Jeanne and her travel - to which her only response was that it was an eventful trip with vague details, but also stories that Jeanne herself was particularly enthusiastic to tell, such as the admirable beauty of Amestris and her meeting with various people, both friendly and helpful.

Their conversation was heard down the hall, muffled behind the bathroom door, where another project is in progress. Measuring cups and kitchen utensils cluttered the bathroom sink, baking soda, leaves, flour, and various other ingredients in boxes and bags were neatly placed on the floor. The bathtub was filled with cold water, and kneeling before it was the Caster of the Fullmetal Alchemist.

"Sounds like they're having quite a bit of fun out there," the Caster mused to himself. "I pray that you'll be able to adapt nicely into this world's society. I'm afraid that I can only do so much with what limited ingredients I've gathered. Incidentally, you will not be _one-hundred percent_ from the get-go."

He reaches over to his side and picked up a jar. A smooth, pinkish white piece of flesh was curled and floated in the center of the water, little stubs poking out like they were its tiny limbs, and a dark circle with a purple-like filling at each side of the flesh, blinking every few moments.

"When you are formed, I shall have to personally teach you how to behave as a fellow human, but you will need to develop yourself as a living being, and experience the world as a newborn taking their first breath in life's promised chaos and wonders. You'll lack proper sight, you won't be able to speak properly for a while, but you should still be able to think clearly, and your Circuits will grow in time."

Caster removed the lid of the jar, with his sleeves rolled back to his shoulders, he gently let the jar sunk into the tub, and tipped it to transfer the living flesh. "I'm fairly certain that you will be a most dependable assistant, and if possible that we may remain with those brothers, a close protector of them. Yes... I can see it. You will learn to be quite attached to those two."

The piece of flesh swam around the tub like competing in a leisurely race, and slowly it grew in size.

* * *

"Aaaand there!" Winry lifted the rag against Edward's newly repaired automail, a completed her work nicely polished. "Good as new! Try it out."

Edward stood up from his seat, the first thing he did was to flex his fingers. "Looking good..." He rolled his shoulder twice and thrust a powerful but short jab. "Alright! Feels pretty good! Well done as always. Thanks, Winry."

"No problem, now _try_ not to get it wrecked again. I want to avoid spending hours sitting on a train just to come back here."

Edward cringed, "Right. Sorry about that, but I really appreciate you coming anyway. Are you gonna head back home?"

Winry sighed, "I don't know. Like I said, I'm not a big fan of train rides, and the jetlag hasn't left me just yet. I think I'll stick around this city for a while."

"In that case, you're welcome to stay here for the night," Edward suggested. "We'll probably have to go grocery shopping though, for some reason there isn't a lot I can find in the fridge or cabinets..."

"Why not take your friend out for a little dinner date?" A voice calls out from the front door, "I can recommend a few places if you like."

The brothers, Jeanne, and Winry looked to the speaker. Maes Hughes greeted the teens with a large smile, led in by Sergeant Brosh and Lieutenant Maria. "Hey there boys!" The man in glasses said. "I'm glad to see you're both still kicking!"

"Lieutenant Colonel!" Edward exclaimed. "I'm surprised to see you here. I figured Central Command is too hectic to let anybody go."

"Oh don't worry about that, I let my assistant Sheska take overtime!" It did not take either of them, save for Jeanne and Winry, long to decipher Hughes's claim of "let" to really mean "forced." They thoughtfully sent their sympathies for Sheska.

"And I see you're here too." Hughes went to shake hands with Jeanne who nodded his way. "Jeanne right? I'm Lieutenant Colonel Maes Hughes. We haven't really talked much back in East City, so hopefully, we can change that real soon. I didn't get a chance to thank you personally for helping the Elric brothers."

"It's no trouble, I'm happy to have helped," Jeanne humbly stated.

Releasing their grip, Hughes addressed the whole room again. "I hope I didn't interrupt anything important here," he said before re-evaluating what he sees. "Actually, are you guys on a double-date right now? You sly boys."

His words actually disrupted Alphonse's solemn thinking. Edward sputtered and briefly spat incomprehensible words, "What the hell?! We're not on a date! Get your weird ideas out of your head!"

"D-date?" Jeanne repeated, grasping her cheeks that were glowing red. "N-no! That's not what this is at all!"

Unlike her host, Jeanne has never been on a date with any boy in her life. It is as she had previously stated to herself, there was no such romance in her life. She should not be so flustered over the obvious jest from the lieutenant colonel, or was this Rose expressing her embarrassment? The emotions of the Holy Maiden and the girl from Liore are so intertwined and mended like glue, it would confuse both girls as to say who is feeling what. Furthermore, if Hughes was serious, who did he assume was dating whom? Edward with Winry or-

 _W-wait a minute, why am I thinking like this? None of us are dating anyway!_ She lightly slapped her cheeks to return her composure.

"Oh no need to be shy! Just no funny business, you hear?" Hughes continued his assault of teases, adjusting his glasses. "Seducing these sweet girls can make a guy look scummy, you know?"

Alphonse waved both of his hands urgently, denying outright, "W-We're doing nothing of the sort, sir!"

"There's nothing _funny_ going on! Stop making this weird!" Edward fumed. "Are you here to torment us or is there something else you want?"

"How harsh! I just figured I would stop by to see if you guys were alright, and you haven't even introduced me to your mechanic!" Hughes took the initiative to fix that, offering his hand to Winry. "It's a pleasure to meet you, young lady."

"Uh, you too." The mechanic greeted, shaking his hands while bearing confusion at the strange ordeal she had witnessed. "I'm Winry, Winry Rockbell."

After their brief introduction, Hughes then informed the true intentions of his visit, "Anyway, there is actually a reason I stopped by. I came to give you a message Ed. You'll be happy to know that you boys won't be needing your bodyguards any longer now."

"Seriously?! It's about time!" But while Edward cheered, Winry was shocked to hear the truth of lieutenant Ross's and sergeant Brosh's presence.

"Hold on! Bodyguards?! You mean those officers weren't just his colleagues?" At her glare, the Fullmetal Alchemist's happy mood was inverted. "What kind of trouble are you in that you needed bodyguards?"

"Uh... well..." Now placed in a corner with no easy escape, Edward could only look away. "It's nothing for you to worry about."

It was always this excuse, an excuse that always comes whenever she sees him come to Resembool; hurt, in bandages, and a destroyed arm or leg. There was always _nothing to worry about_ when clearly it was the opposite. It was the same excuse used time after time, so many times that Winry has come to the point where she greatly detested that excuse in any scenario.

How can Edward or Alphonse expect her not to worry? How can they expect her to simply live her carefree life while these boys are putting theirs on the line constantly? Were they not still best friends? They used to tell each other so many secrets, and now, it was like Winry is growing farther and farther from the boys whom she loved with all her being. Did they think she could not handle it? Did they not trust her? Even if they were right, that she would react badly, did they really need to shut her out every time she asked if they were okay?

Seeing Edward behave this way, it was apparently so. Angered and disheartened, Winry quickly packed up her tools. "Fine. You don't want to tell me? That's just _fine_. It's _always_ been like that anyway."

Jeanne stepped towards her at the sound of her frustration, "Winry, please wait. Ed and Al simply do not wish to worry you. They only thought to protect you."

Winry huffed. "Sure. That's the easy excuse, but do you really think I'll just accept it just as easily?" She sends Edward another glare. His jaw tightened and avoided meeting her eyes.

"We used to tell each other everything," the auto-mail mechanic said absent-mindedly. _Now it's like we're becoming strangers..._

Swallowing back her tears, Winry yanked along her case and luggage, "I'm gonna decline your offer for me to stay here. I'll find some other place."

"Winry-" But the mechanic did not stop at Edward's call, nor Jeanne's gentle pleas. She marches straight for the door without even looking at the distant Alphonse or the concerned officers, her head lowered so that they would not see her saddened face. However, a hand grasped her shoulder, stopping her from completely leaving.

"Hey, there's no need to go that far," Hughes said, patting Winry by the shoulder. "Why don't you stay at my place? A friend of the Elrics is a friend of mine."

Winry looked back at him, surprised by the offer. "R-really? You would do that?"

"Of course! My wife and daughter will be happy to have you! In fact..." Hughes turned to Jeanne. A sudden feeling of dread befell everyone but the oblivious girls. "Why don't you come along Jeanne? My little girl's having a birthday party, and after that whole fiasco last night, everyone's looking for a good distraction. My little Elicia would love to have more people at her party!"

"Oh, that's very kind," Jeanne began, "but I don't want to intrude-"

"Nonsense! You won't intrude at all! The more the merrier!"

Edward suddenly came to Jeanne's side, surprising her at his rushed movements, "Run while you still can, he'll gush about his family until your ears bleed."

"W-what?" Jeanne attempted to register his warning until the lieutenant colonel snatched her by the hand.

"It's official! You're coming with us!" There was no chance of defying the happy family man. "This is a good way for us to get to know each other better! Best of all, we can do it over cake!"

As if to add the final touch that declared the man's insanity for his obsession over his family, he pulled out his wallet and a roll of several pictures fell. "I can even tell you all about my sweet, loving, wonderful wife and my sweet, precious, amazing daughter! You're going to love them until you cry!"

Without waiting to hear any actual confirmation of accepting his invitation, most importantly, an agreement from either Winry or Jeanne to accept the overly generous invitation, Hughes has already collected Winry's belongings and began dragging the girls along. "Sorry boys! I'm gonna have to steal your dates!"

"WE'RE NOT DATING!" Edward and Jeanne desperately insisted. The lieutenant colonel merely chucked as he left with his unwilling house guests.

"...I honestly hate that man sometimes," Edward said. Somehow, although they did not feel the exact same way, the others nonetheless resonated with his feelings. They all knew very well how _unbearably_ _pushy_ the lieutenant colonel can be. Especially as soon as he started his relentless bragging and affections for his family that the entire military should have already heard about by now, slowly and surely grating on everyone's patience. It's a wonder how no one has killed him yet.

* * *

"Happy Birthday Elicia!"

Jeanne and Winry clapped along with the other parents and children. They witnessed little Elicia blew the fire out from the candles on her cake, a happy infectious laugh bubbled from the little bundle of joy.

"So... a birthday party, huh?" Winry affirmed her surroundings. She was not at all comfortable with where she was. Despite Hughes' _forceful_ invitation, she knew almost no one in this party and felt so out of place. Her only comfort was Jeanne's presence, and to her amazement, Jeanne had a much better time fitting in than Winry ever hoped she herself could.

"Lord Almighty, grant this child another year of happiness and good health. Bless her beloved parents, and bless her kind neighbors. Amen." Jeanne's heartfelt gift of a simple prayer was so beautifully said, even the children were in awe for Elicia's invisible present, and the little birthday girl grew even happier. Despite the abrupt coming, Winry could not help but feel ashamed that she did not bring a present, something that was just as meaningful if not a little bit of heart to it. Like the entire room was enlightened with the angelic warmth of the other girl's presence.

 _I've noticed before but..._ Winry thought to herself, staring at the other girl. _Jeanne's really cool. She gets along with everyone she meets and is always so kind, not to mention pretty. I kind of wonder if I should dye my bangs pink because of how nice it looks..._

Much like how she was inspired to wear earrings after seeing a female officer wear one, the very female officer she remembered stopping by Resembool for the first time to see Edward and Alphonse quite a long time ago along with a male officer.

What were their names...? Oh right! Riza and Mustang. That was it. She wondered how those officers are doing now. Well, not that either of the Elrics would tell her on their own accord anyway.

"Are you alright, Winry?" Jeanne asked when she noticed Winry was staring. The mechanic realized herself and shook her head.

"I-it's nothing," Winry assured.

Jeanne kept her concerns for her friend, and reconsidered her approach, "Why not go say happy birthday to Elicia? I'm sure she'll be delighted."

Winry hesitated, "U-um. Well..."

"Excuse me!"

They looked down at the caller and found a wonderful smile beaming innocently at them. "Are you having fun?" Elicia asked them.

Jeanne answered with a joyful expression, "Yes. Thank you so much! We're so happy that your father invited us, isn't that right Winry?"

Catching up, Winry weakly nodded, "Y-yeah. Sure is. Uh, Happy Birthday Elicia."

Elicia pointed at the large table in the room. "There's cake for everyone, do you want me to get you one?"

"Shouldn't the birthday girl be the first to eat the cake?" Winry asked, kneeling down at Elicia's level.

Elicia nodded, "Yeah, but I want everyone to have some first so they can be happy. And seeing everyone happy makes me happy!"

The awkward feeling in Winry faded at the little girl's bright personality, and the mechanic smiled. "That's really considerate of you. Can you tell me how old you are now?"

Two little fingers were held up, "I'm Two!" The lively sound of children playing and adults conversing filled the void of uncertainty, and then Elicia lifted another finger, "No wait! I'm Three now!"

Instantly, Winry and Jeanne clung onto each other, defeated by the adorable blunder of the little girl, "So cute~" They delightfully whispered out. Hughes has every right to brag about his child.

After a while, Winry slowly adjusted to the party, in part to Jeanne's efforts of helping her come to good terms with both the children and the parents. Slowly but surely, Winry's sadness dwindled as she tries to have as much fun as she could for Elicia's sake.

There was a knock on the door. Being the closest to it, the wife of Maes Hughes went to answer. Opening the door to see who it was, Gracia had only a brief glance, and her eyes widened. The person standing on the other side of the doorway nervously fixing her orange hair when she saw Gracia, and matched the other woman's expression. "Gracy?"

"Tali?" Her surprise subsiding, Gracia was overblown with joy. "Oh my. Tali! Is that really you?!"

"Gracy!" Talia raised her arms and moved towards her friend, immediately welcomed in with a hug. "Its been so long!" Talia said. "You look beautiful!"

"So do you!" Gracia said, so happy she was that she could just bounce in one place as old memories flooded her mind. "Maes told me that you would come! I'm so glad you did!"

"Right?! I was able to finish work early and had time to stop by! So where's the special birthday girl? I got a present for her!" Talia held up a small box wrapped in yellow with black stripes.

"Elicia's eating cake with the other children. We'll be opening presents after the party games," Gracia explained. "Maes told me about Sheska's situation. How is Ms. Sharon doing? I haven't had the time to visit her at the hospital."

"She's doing better than before!" Talia happily stated. "Our old teacher is as tough as always! She might just get back up and moving really soon! If she makes a full recovery by the end of the year, she and Sheska will move back in together!"

"Oh that's wonderful to hear! I'm so happy that they're doing okay, especially after Hughes hired Sheska as his assistant. Oh Tali, you are amazing for looking after her for so long. I keep wondering how much Sheska has grown, I've been planning to stop by at Maes' work so that I could - oh hold on, let me get Maes!" Gracia looked back to the living room, "Deary! Talia's here! Oh come in Tali, I can't wait to hear what you've been doing!"

Hughes was in the middle of his "neighing" as the beautiful unicorn for the princess Elicia when he heard Gracia. "Talia's here?!" He asked a neighbor to take his place and gave him his daughter and the pointy party cap - which was "the horn" - before rushing over to his wife's side. "You came Talia! I knew that you would make it here."

"Tell me about it!" Talia's cheeks were brimming red. "I was so excited to come over, I almost wanted to barge in just to see you guys again!"

This was a lie, Talia had been in front of the Hughes Family door for over twenty minutes. Pacing around the corridor while biting her nails, gathering the courage to knock. It has been more than several years, she was beginning to wonder if her old friend would remember her. But before she knew it, she had knocked on the door and dreadfully regretted doing so as she was not at all mentally prepared for this sudden reunion. She thought of running until Gracia answered.

But now relieved to see that Gracia has never forgotten her, Talia was filled with nothing but glee.

"It's a shame Sheska couldn't come. I'm sure Elicia would have adored her," Gracia sighed openly.

"Yeah? Well blame your husband for her not being here!" With an exaggerated point, Talia accused Hughes who was expressing mock-innocence, "I know what you did! You buried my precious Sheska with _your_ paperwork! You know, ever since she started working for you, she hasn't made me dinner as much as she used to now! What do you have to say for yourself?!"

"Oh really?" Hughes seemed sincere. "Well, I would have been more than happy to invite you over here to eat with us sometime. I completely forgot how much of a glutton you were."

Hughes ducked just as Talia swung something for him. Her wooden sword grazing his head as he attempted attack captured most of the party guests' attention, "Did you just called me _fat_?! You'll pay for that!"

"Oh this brings back so many memories," Gracia fondly reminisces. "You're still carrying that old wooden sword?"

"I sure do!" Talia settled the wooden sword over her shoulder, "You're looking at the Kendo Master for several years now. I would have been champ by now!"

"Too bad you were disqualified, then eventually banned for having a tiger doll keychain attached to the end of that sword throughout high school." Sighing in relief that he missed the weapon by a centimeter, Hughes then daringly added, "It really is a shame, _Tiger_ suits you really well."

Another swing of her wooden sword, another attempt to escape Talia's wrath. "You _know_ I hate being called that! It's so unattractive, I couldn't get any guys because of it!"

Before she continued, Talia realized she was being stared at by the children and the adults. While she had a fleeting reaction of embarrassment, a wonderfully devious idea came to her. "Hey kids? You want to beat up the big mean dragon?"

"Ooooh! Is that what you were doing?" One child said. The eyes of the children, including Elicia, were enlightened with absolute comprehension of an otherwise new game they see before them. Hughes felt impending doom.

"I want to beat up the dragon!" Another child said.

"Yeah! Let's beat him up!" A little boy grabbed a pillow.

Talia grinned at the children and sent a particularly evil one to the increasingly anxious Hughes. "Alright, then my little warriors. Let's get him!"

All the children screamed their war cry as they ran up to Hughes. "W-wait! Let's play nice now - ow! Talia! That really hurts!"

Talia merely smiled sweetly at him as she brought back her wooden sword. Gracia laughed as she enjoyed the sight of her little girl and the other children slowly overtaking her husband. "You shouldn't have called her Tiger, dear," she said as she wiped a happy tear from her eye. "You and I both knew what kind of trouble would come if anyone called her that."

Winry and Jeanne stood aside, each holding a plate of cake slices and forks in their hands as they watched the helpless lieutenant colonel be overrun with children pounding him mercilessly with pillows and even their own wrapped gifts. It was then that Talia finally acknowledged the presence of the Holy Maiden, "Jeanne? You're here too?!"

Jeanne greeted the teacher with a smile, "Hello again Talia. How are you?"

"Oh I'm great! Even better now that I met Gracy after all this time! I'd tried getting Isaiah to come but he said he had monk duties," she stuck her tongue out, a show of what she felt was a lame excuse. "Ah well, not like he'll have any fun if Sheska isn't here. Who's this by the way?"

Winry stiffened at the gained attention. Jeanne calmed her with a gentle grab to her hand as she introduced her, "This is Winry Rockbell. A friend of mine, and a very close friend of the Elric brothers."

"Uh, hi! It's nice to meet you," Winry shook hands with Talia.

"Nice meeting you too! I actually haven't seen the brothers in a while. Are they still looking for... whatever it was in those notes? I hope Sheska has been a big help to you guys."

Jeanne fought off the disturbed frown, forcing on a smile, "It... wasn't exactly what they were looking for. But the brothers greatly appreciated Sheska's hard work."

"Is that so? That's too bad, but we're glad to have helped either way." Hearing the pained cries and pleas from Hughes, Talia started for his and Gracia's direction. "Anyway, I got to talk with Gracia, can't wait to hear everything I missed in her life. I hope you have a good time! Oh and tell those brothers I said hi!"

Jeanne waved at her, after Talia's leave, she looked back at Winry. "That was Talia Fumora, she's a close friend to a librarian the brothers grew to know when they came here."

"Was it for..." Winry looked around before leaning forward to whisper, "Was it something that'll help them get back to normal?"

Jeanne's face contorted with guilt, she slowly shook her head, "It... wasn't at all what they hoped for."

Winry studied her expression, feeling an ominous meaning behind it. "What do you mean?"

Jeanne lightly twirled the fork in her hand, "...Winry, are you still mad at Ed?"

Though caught off-guard by the sudden change in subject, Winry considered the question, tasting a piece of cake before answering, "...It's not like I can't understand... or maybe that's the problem."

She dispassionately stabbed the cake with her fork, "Trying to protect me by not telling me anything? How is that supposed to make me feel better? By not telling me, they're just making me even more worried, that something really bad happened and... I don't know what to do to help them."

Jeanne nodded, sympathetically and with complete understanding, "It's not easy. Knowing something, and afraid to tell the truth. They might not know how to tell you, or they truly believe that letting you know would put you at risk."

"So you think what they're doing isn't wrong..." A faint betrayal in Winry's eyes, hurting Jeanne's heart.

"No. I don't believe it was entirely right," Jeanne admitted. "I have done so myself and caused myself grief, hurting the people I cared for. But the reason why I did it was so that the people I wanted to protect would not be so incessantly worried, but that might have just been an excuse."

Jeanne held a downcast expression, "I was afraid that they might hate me, that they might not believe I was telling the truth, and resent me either way until they found out for themselves. I should have been more than willing to tell them what they needed to know, but I chose to let them have a few days of peace."

No matter that Tim Marcoh encouraged her to go this route, it was her decision to agree to it. "I don't think what I did was the right choice, even if it was the correct choice, I still betrayed their trust, and I haven't entirely forgiven myself for it."

"Jeanne..." Winry did not expect to hear this. She never thought the girl who seemed so open and honest, would also be guilty of carrying secrets and hiding from others. "Was it...really that bad?"

The Holy Maiden nodded, "I cannot undo what I have done. I would do mainly anything to make it up to them, even if I don't end up being forgiven. But please understand, for the brothers to not say anything is the same reason why I haven't. They never meant to hurt you, they only want you to have a peaceful life and away from any worries. I promise you, it was under the best intentions, even if the way they went about it was wrong."

Winry did not know what to say, she could only question herself. Is this the reason why the brothers stopped being so open to her? Were they afraid for some reason? But if they were, then she should know all the more so to help them somehow! They were friends! How can she lighten their burden if they don't confide to her? How could anyone keep this amount of pain to themselves if they don't let somebody in?

The girls looked up at the sound of Hughes "ow ow ow!" and saw him limping towards them. "Glad that's over, thanks to my little princess Elicia declaring that I was reformed and they managed to spare me... Well, except Jeremy," he rubbed his head as he in bitterness looked back at the boy who was picking his small nose.

"Anyway, what's with the seclusion and the sour faces?" Hughes comes closer to their side. "Everything okay?"

"Well, sort of, I mean..." Winry gave up and simply sighed. "We're... kind of having a dilemma here. Mr. Hughes, is it wrong for the people you love to keep secrets from you? Even if they're trying to protect you, shouldn't they be open and honest just so they can avoid the pain? I mean - I know you must have meant well Jeanne, and I can believe that it's the same with those brothers, but I feel like you could always come to me, or anyone, if there was something that bad bothering you guys."

Jeanne considered Winry's reason, it really would seem to be less troubling has she been more honest, but the problem was she could not afford to always be honest in her position. She couldn't bring herself to tell the Elrics about the Philosopher's Stone the first moment she realized what it really was, but besides that, she could not tell Winry of her other troubles; a Ruler Servant running around to keep together a fantastical war between warriors beyond time and space.

She could not disturb Winry's mind with such an incredible and frightening event between legends of immense power, but even Jeanne is debating how truthful or how secretive must she be with how the war is now. If things were to escalate any greater, she might as well demand an evacuation for the entire Amestrian population.

Jeanne may be wise for her age, but she is still a young girl who does not know everything. She is aware of this and is more than willing to learn so to better herself and for the sake of others.

"Hm... I don't know about what Jeanne did, but..." Hughes came to Winry's side, "Does your question have something to do with you and the boys?"

Winry's face scrunched, "It's just... I've known the Elrics for as long as I can remember. They're more than my best friends, they're like my brothers. I've lost my parents at a young age, and... well, I was afraid of losing any more of the people I love."

That night when she and Pinako were confronted by Alphonse as a hollowed armor, carrying a dying Edward covered in blood, it was a rainy night Winry still recalled perfectly, the night when she feared the worst has happened; that two more people important to her were about to be taken from her again.

"You worry for them," Hughes said.

Winry smiled sadly, "All the time. You know the only time they ever come for a visit was because Edward's automail needed fixing? The only time I ever see those guys is when one or both of them are injured and damaged. When we were kids, they would do stupid stuff, and if I wasn't there to see it, they would usually fess up and tell me everything, but it's different now. Whenever Ed gets into trouble, he never tells me what's going on. Al's acting strange too. I haven't heard much from him, but that's how I know something isn't right. Whatever is bothering him, I won't know for sure, but I know what he'll do. Keep it to himself. That's what they both do."

She frowned, "I don't get it. I know things changed ever since their mom died, but I always figured that they can come to me so that I can be there for them, like always. But they're just bottling everything up. They never let me in anymore."

"Maybe they thought you would understand," Hughes suggested, his tone gentle and kind. "You know those brothers the longest, and they know you. Maybe they thought that there was nothing they needed to say, because they believed you would already know."

"Maybe back then, but I'm not psychic!" Winry argued. "There are some things I need to actually be told about."

"This might be hard to accept but..." Hughes removed his glasses, cleaning them with a small soft fabric he pulled out from his pocket. "Men prefer to let their actions speak for them. They don't want anyone to be burdened with their pain, not as long as they can help it. They don't ever want the people they care about to worry about them. That's just how they are."

He shifted his gaze to Jeanne and bore a smile. There was comprehension in Jeanne's solemn expression, a sense of kin in spirit from the girl and the boys she has spent a considerable amount of time with. A girl who understood exactly the sort of pain the brothers are bearing for themselves, and themselves alone.

"Even so, there may come a time where they will ask for help, and I'm sure when that time comes, they can come to you. Because they knew who to trust when they need someone who will always be there for them, isn't that enough to understand?"

Winry held no counter to that. She knew. She understood. There was no helping the boys' stubborn nature, but she knew that they are the kind of brothers who would carry their pain, and if it is true that when the pain is too much to bear... Then she will be more than willing to help ease their sorrows. No matter how furious she becomes occasionally, she could never be so angry as to turn them away. Her door will always be open for them, no matter what.

She will have patience. She will wait for the brothers to come at their own discretion regardless of whatever excuse they may have. Knowing that, and as long as they do not forget their friendship, she will be content long enough to wait for their eventual disclosure.

"I guess you can say this also applies to you, Jeanne," Hughes addressed the other girl. He has Jeanne's complete attention, which encouraged him to go on, "I don't know what kind of trouble you're mixed up in, but for anyone to willingly put themselves aside for the sake of someone, you're a good kid in my book. But we're not all invincible, so if it turns out that whatever problem you're facing is too much, you can always lean on friends to ease the burden. There are people out there who's more than willing to hear you out, and help you however they can. You don't always have to do everything alone."

Jeanne took his advice to heart. No, not advice, it was the truth. In her life, she had only went so far as she did and rescued France from the loss of the Hundred Year War because of all the help she had received. From her comrades and most of all, from God himself. She would have never assured victory if not for the many people helping her, allowing her to fight, trusting her judgment. With all of her strength, she justified their faith in her. Even though she had died tragically, an end she has long made peace with, she would never have gone so far without the aid of others, and she owed them everything for it.

Jeanne does acknowledge that she is in need of assistance, and in her current condition of restrained privileges with questionable reliability of her senses, she will have to search for it. If all goes as she hopes, that Edward will give her his Servants, then she will have the help she needed. She looked over to Winry who also looked at her way. A smile slowly formed from each, individually comprehending Hughes' advice, and each having a better understanding of the issue, no longer tearing at them intensely as before. They nodded to one another, at peace for now.

"Hey Elicia! Come play with me!"

Their attention was swiftly taken at the sound of children calling for Elicia. Turning around, they find one boy proposing playtime to Elicia, but then another boy ran up to them. "No way! Elicia wants to play with me!"

Another boy suddenly came, "No! Elicia! Come play with me!"

Winry and Jeanne smiled at the sight. "Look at that, Elicia's real popular with the boys. Isn't that adorable?" Winry looked to Hughes.

And saw a gun in his hand, calmly clocked with supposed ammunition. Jeanne instantly turned to the sound and shared Winry's horrified reaction.

Hughes puts back on his glasses, "If you will excuse me ladies..."

Jeanne immediately intervened, moving in front of the silently seething father, "M-Mr. Hughes! There's no need for this behavior! They're only children!"

"Step aside ma'am," Hughes looked through her, his target on the boys who he sees are preying his innocent child. "I'm not letting anyone touch my daughter, or they're going to lose a finger."

"Your actions speaks _too_ loudly!" Winry shouted before running to help Jeanne hold back the man on a mission.

* * *

"You guys didn't have to help me out this much," Edward said to the officers following behind him. "You heard the Lieutenant Colonel, you won't need to look after me or Al anymore."

The Fullmetal Alchemist, along with lieutenant Ross and sergeant Brosh, walked down the sidewalk carrying brown bags of groceries in each arm. Residents of Central City at ease passed by, enjoying the warm season around them.

"True," Maria conceded. "But we haven't been called to duty yet, and besides, we're always happy to help you brothers out."

"I sure am gonna miss our time together," Denny confessed, tears clouding his vision, "Oh who am I kidding, I'm _really_ going to miss you guys! You better promise to visit me and the lieutenant sometime!"

"Uh... sure. I'll do that," Edward assured, slowly distancing himself away from the emotional man.

"I understand how the sergeant feels," Maria conveyed. "Without us, I worry that you boys will get into even bigger trouble without anyone else there to stop you guys."

"Bigger trouble than last night?... You know what? I seriously don't want to see that," Edward expressed blatantly.

"Just... be careful. I mean it, okay?" Maria walked up until she was by the Fullmetal Alchemist's side. "The sergeant and I care about you boys, so you better swear to us that you won't do anything reckless without someone there to back you up."

"I mean... I can't really promise that mu-" Edward halted when suddenly the officers quickly moved and blocked his way, looming over him with such pair of intense glaring.

"Swear to us!" The officers fiercely insisted, closing the distance and invoking a deep sense of pressure. The Fullmetal Alchemist felt himself trapped, suffocating under the glaring of these officers. He did not last long until finally, he relented.

"Alright! I swear it! Can we keep going now?"

Maria and Denny offered one more long look at the alchemist, considering just how sincere his words were, and smiled. "As long as you understand," they said in unison.

He and the officers resumed their way. After reaching the hotel and to his room, Edward insisted that Maria and Denny should leave the groceries by the door inside, not wishing to let them work any more than they have to. The officers eventually agreed and left the bags for Edward to take care of himself.

"Well, I guess this is it," Denny said after setting down the last bag.

"We'll see you and Al around. Take care, and don't forget about your promise," Maria bid Edward well, and with the sergeant beside her, they departed down the hall.

Edward said his goodbye and watched them leave, having already thanked them for their hard work and efforts in keeping an eye out for him and his brother. The lieutenant and sergeant may have been overbearing and nosy, but he did not hate them and knew that they were indeed kind people. Even Edward could not deny that he would miss their presence and encouraging attitudes. He walked back inside and locked the door, "I'm home Al!"

Alphonse looked up, sitting in the same position Edward last saw him in, "Hey Ed." He stood up, "Do you need help?"

"Yeah, just grab those bags right there and bring them to the kitchen. I think I'm going to make myself a sandwich after this. Not sure if that crazy family is going to let Jeanne come back here, if she does, I doubt he'll let her come back hungry, but you'll never know." He pondered about Winry. He had not stopped thinking about what happened between him and his friend. But as much as he would want her to not be angry at him anymore, he doubted that she would be happy to see him right now. He'll just have to hope that Hughes and Jeanne will get her to calm down before she would ever want to see him.

Edward never meant to hurt Winry's feelings, but he could not nor ever would involve her in just knowing that he was pulled into a dangerous situation, something that he can safely say she will have a hard time understanding once she hears it. No, he couldn't tell her what's been happening around him for the last month, he just wished Winry would understand.

Alphonse brought the four other bags, able to easily carry them with both arms and his bulky figure. He followed Edward into the kitchen and together set the groceries on the counter. "Whew! Alright, time to set them apart."

"...Are these food also for Archer and Caster?"

Edward paused when he started taking out a boxed ingredient, he considered carefully, "...I thought about it, but I haven't seen either of those guys all day. Maybe they went off to eat somewhere."

"Not quite."

Edward shrieked and jumped away, knocking down the bag he had and all its contents tumbled out. Archer materialized right beside the brothers, leisurely taking an apple from one of the bags and examined it as if a product of personal interest.

Alphonse had also been surprised by Archer's arrival, even after seeing his way of leaving twice last night, he has not become accustomed to it at all. "Oh, you're still here." He said rather lamely.

"D-dammit! Don't do that!" Edward yelled at the navy blue man, grabbing his chest to showcase how close of a heart attack he was. "Can you... not just appear like a freakin ghost? Use the damn door like a normal person!"

"Noted." Archer returned the apple from where it was. "You have a rather substantial amount of money to afford all of this yourself. Then again, I still find it difficult to believe someone as young as you are to actually be a soldier of the sort."

"...Did I actually tell you I was working with the military?" Edward asked, searching through his memories if he somehow let that information slipped.

"If you haven't before, I deduced it myself as I watched you go about your day," was Archer's answer, searching through the groceries bag for whatever caught his interest.

"You were _spying_ on me?" Disturbed, Edward etched himself away from the man.

"Oh please, nothing so crude as that," Archer gestured that word away. "It was merely an _observation_ , and after such observation - mainly the lieutenant and sergeant's behavior around you, I put the pieces together. Naturally, I was right on the mark."

"So, spying on me?" Or maybe it should be considered stalking. Edward felt chills run up his spine that a man in his ghost form was following him everywhere, the Fullmetal Alchemist would have never assumed better.

Archer sighed patiently through the nose, "If you considered it spying, then those officers might as well be doing the same. I was only watching out for you. As a Servant would for his Master."

"Okay, first of all, I already told you to stop calling me Master," Edward affirmed. "Second of all, I don't need anybody to look out for me every twenty-four hours, the lieutenant and sergeant were ordered to guard us just for a little while, and I already have my brother watching my back."

Alphonse looked away, mumbling to himself, "Not like I could sleep anyway..."

"Huh? You said something Al?"

Alphonse resumed placing the bought products inside the pantries, "It's nothing."

With this doubtful assurance, Edward could only frown in concern for his younger brother. Archer silently watches the boys with a calculative gaze, suspecting that this may be the time that the air will be cleared between them, and for Alphonse' trouble subconscious to be put to rest. His attention was briefly taken, however, when a sudden thump was heard from another room. The Archer was the only one to have noticed while Edward began his question of curiosity for Archer.

"So you and Caster were with me all day and I didn't even noticed?" Edward asked, his disturbed feelings of the notion growing.

"If you were a proper Magus, you would have sensed the presence of your Servants, even while we are in spiritual forms," Archer explained. "But I digress, I alone have followed you closely. I would have stayed and kept your brother company, but if it is true that you tend to attract trouble wherever you go, it was only logical that one of us remained close, I was just the only Servant available."

Though it was unappealing at the fact that Archer has once again eavesdropped on his conversation, Edward asked for the whereabouts of the other man, "Then where's Caster?"

Archer rubbed his own chin in thought, "Last I saw him, he was in the latrine after carrying plenty of ingredients and utensils from the kitchen, and hasn't stepped out for a few hours now."

"...Wait, so he's the reason why I couldn't find a single damn spoon here?!" Baffled and angered, Edward marched out of the kitchen, "And he's been in the bathroom for hours? What the hell is he doing in there?!"

"My best guess, he has settled to begin his work as a Caster by making the restroom his main base." At Edward's confusion, Archer elaborated, "His lab. Quite creative if he could find uses in a place like that."

"He's making the _bathroom_ his _lab_?!" Edward kicked off into a sprint until he reached the bathroom door, there were two restrooms, and Archer's tells him that this was the one where Caster has disappeared into. "We don't own this hotel! If he breaks something, then we have to pay for it and it sure as hell won't be cheap!"

He tried for the door knob but found it lock, and so proceeded to bang against the door with his automail hand. "Hey! What do you think you're doing in there?! Unlock the door dammit!"

"Such a mouth you have..." Archer smirked, further aggravating the already aggravated State Alchemist. Alphonse was close behind them just as Edward pointed at the amused Archer.

"You can be helpful or I can wipe that smug grin off your face you-!"

A click in the doorknob, the door slowly opened but nothing was there to have unlocked it. Caster quietly calls out, "Come in, I was hoping to speak with all of you."

Edward pushed the door and made his way in, "What the hell are you-" His words fell at the scene before him. The sink is a mess with utensils and measuring cups, there's powder and water in some places of the floor, some were somehow on the walls and shower curtains, and there he saw Caster, pouring out from a box of what looked to be salt into the tub that was layered in soap bubbles. "What did you _do_ to this place?! Are you trying to renovate or did something in here exploded?!"

Alphonse looked inside, and he too shared Edward's shocked reaction. What on earth happened in here?

"I'm terribly sorry for not asking you first, my friend. But I figured that if I am to travel somewhere, I should need a helper to immediately assist me for a few minor things." Caster stopped his pour as he leaned closer to the tub, "There, it's done."

Edward began ranting that the serene man should very damn well clean this mess up, but caught onto Caster's words, "Done? What's done?"

Caster sunk his hands into the water, and with a single heave, pulled himself out. Gripping his wet hands were pale fingers, then two arms, and then an entire body with short blue-gray hair. A drowsy expression adorn, like having just awaken in the morning, and a sense of naïve purity muddled in her dull eyes of mixed amber and violet.

It was as if time froze as the Elric brothers stared, incomprehension at the sight before them. When they finally registered what they were seeing, they realized that the body Caster had pulled out had a feminine build, her body coated in soap bubbles as if a dress for her, and on that regard...

"It's rude to stare at an undressed lady."

Archer helped processed the minds of the Elrics, that there was indeed a girl in their bathroom, and no matter the white bubbly gown, she did not in fact wore any clothes.

Edward's jaw hung low, his face reddening. Alphonse's helmet might as well be bursting with the same color. "A... A g-g-g-girl?!" Once Alphonse uttered that very word of acknowledgment, he "eek!"ed and slammed both of his hands over his eyes, almost knocking off his helmet. "I'm sorry miss! I didn't see anything!"

"What the- who the- why the-" Edward tore his eyes away from the scene, his face burning. "Why the hell is there a girl in our bathroom?!"

"T-towel! S-someone get her a towel!" Alphonse stuttered out, refusing to do the honors as he blinded himself. "M-mr. Caster? W-w-who is that girl?"

"She is a new assistant I created," Caster answered as he helped the girl step out of the tub, holding her by the hand. He retrieved a towel just as Alphonse had begged him to, and wrapped around the girl's torso with it. "I'm still considering a name for her. Names are very important and special for a person who is about to begin a new life."

"Sh-shut up about that!" Edward spat angrily, still riddled with embarrassment. "Are you stupid?! We're asking why the hell is there a girl here?! And what the hell do you mean you created her?!"

Caster takes another towel to dry the girl's face with, pressing her cheeks that caused her to close one eye "Oh, of course. Forgive me. She's my homunculus."

The brothers stiffened and were unmoving. A long moment of letting Caster's answer circle their minds.

"A homunculus? How fascinating," Archer approaches the dazed girl, her eyes of untainted innocence followed his movements as he rounded to her side, closely examining as he grabbed his chin in piqued intellectual interest. "I've never seen one in person. When I was alive, I've only read out of pure boredom supposed reports and accounts of these artificial beings. And you made her _here_? Wouldn't it require sophisticated contraptions and rare ingredients to create a homunculus?"

"It would have been more suitable, but I made due with what I have here," Caster said. "It is not so an impossible task as some may think. Simply a place to form the body, some ingredients that perfectly substitutes the recipe, and a piece of my own flesh would be all I needed if I wish to make a homunculus in less than a day. Of course, since I lacked everything to make a proper one, she will have to learn through personal experience rather than immediately adapt to her new surroundings. But I'm confident that in time she-"

"Wait wait wait wait wait wait wait wait wait..." Edward repeatedly asked this several more times before he is sure neither men will speak further, "... Did you seriously called her a homunculus?"

Caster confirmed without pause, "Yes, I did."

"...No she isn't." The Fullmetal Alchemist mildly laughed, a cent of his sanity slipping. "There's no way... There's no way she's a homunculus. No way you made a homunculus in a freaken bathroom. Making a homunculus is just a theory! No one's able to make one! Every Alchemist who ever tried always end up failing!"

"You would believe our existence but not a homunculus?" Archer asked, raising an eyebrow at the boy's way of thinking.

"I _still_ don't believe that you guys are what you say you are," Edward matter-of-factly said. "Hell, even if I wasn't a skeptic, making an artificial being so close to a human from scratch, with baking powder and a tub, is just ridiculous!"

Archer and Caster spared a glance at each other. "It seems you will have to show them some proof."

At Archer's suggestion, Caster considered, and came to an idea. He walked around the girl and Archer until he reached the side of the toilet, and picked up what was hiding from everyone else's view. "How about this? I was considering making a second assistant, but I haven't started yet."

He held up a jar filled with water and a pink white smooth piece of _meat?_ floating in the center. Walking up to the cautious brothers, he showed the jar to them. "Watch closely."

Curious, the Elric brothers observed the jaw closely, and waited to see what Caster intended to do. They stared intently as Caster removed the lid, and setting it aside, he takes something the sink; a syringe was what he pulled out, filled with a liquid that has a blue-violet tint to it.

The Caster gently inserted the needle into the piece of flesh, and emptied the contents from within the syringe. There was a brief moment of waiting, lasting only a few seconds, and just when Edward was ready to call out the supposed bluff, the flesh in the jar twitched.

The Elric brothers barely let out a sound as they observed the piece of flesh shifted and expanded; it's chunky form transforming into a fetus-like figure, its color grew pinker, tiny stubs poked out from the curled position of the flesh, the side of what may be its head began to bulge, like a tiny ball was underneath the thin layer so akin to human skin.

The bulge then split itself apart. A white orb with a circle filled with amber color, and a black dot at the center. As soon as it was thought that it could not have looked more like that of a human eye, it blinked at the brothers.

Naturally, the appropriate response for the Elrics was to scream.

* * *

"How could you have forgotten to give that to Ed?" Maria chastised Denny. The Sergeant shrugged as he held up three spoons that were tied together.

"It kept falling out of the bags, so I figured I could carry these in my jacket. I didn't mean to forget about them!" Denny tried to defend himself.

"Well you owe Ed an apology," Maria told him. They had just turned the corner, the Elric brothers room at the end of the hall.

"I wonder why Ed thought he needed more spoons. I was pretty sure there should already be enough in the kitchen-"

The sound of screaming cuts Denny off, and startled the officers. "What in the-" Maria immediately dashed down the corridor, the sergeant following her close behind, "That's coming from the Elrics room!"

They reached the front door of the Elrics and the officers begun banging on the door, "Ed?! Al?! Are you two okay?!"

The brothers were more or less not as so.

"We're in _so_ much trouble!" Edward was gripping his head as he paced around the hallway, passing by again and again the bathroom he avoided looking back into, or else he would end up screaming again.

"Oh my gosh! Oh my Gosh! OH MY GOSH!" Alphonse was breathing heavily despite having no lungs, panicking as much as his older brother while keeping himself standing by grasping the wall.

The Servants and the newly born homunculus observed in ignorant curiosity as the brothers were collectively breaking down in front of them. Caster thought it best to be the first to ask, "Is there something wrong?"

Edward slowly turned his head to the man, "Is there something...? That's a _homunculus_!" He pointed at the girl, "Are you actually serious that she's really a homunculus?! In our bathroom?! In our hotel room?!"

"If you prefer to watch me as I completely create this next homunculus I could-"

"THAT'S NOT THE ISSUE!" Edward yelled to push the reason for his reaction into the man's oblivious mind. "Home-made homunculus creation is _illegal_ in Amestris! At best, it's a life sentence! I could be court-martialed if someone finds out about her being made HERE!"

Caster actually looked rather dumbfounded, if only just a small bit.

"Illegal? I was sure that I saw information about Homunculus creation during the summoning, I thought that this would mean the process is in fact experimented, but outright forbidden?" That's rather inconvenient. In his time, homunculus creation were also considered a theory to the public outside the Mage Society, but it wasn't declared illegal - perhaps seemingly unorthodox or even rebuked by people who believed Homunculus creation to be an act of playing God, but he would not have suspected Homunculus creation to be condemned in this world of Alchemy. How very strange indeed.

"What the hell is that even supposed to-?!"

That's when they heard banging on their front door. "Ed?! Al?!" The brothers instantly recognized the voices to be lieutenant Ross. "Guys! What's going on in there?!" They heard sergeant Brosh.

"Oh no..." Edward started to sweat. "No no no, we can't let them see this! How the hell am I supposed to explain _her_?!" He gestured at the homunculus.

"Ohmygosh Ohmygosh Ohmygosh!" Alphonse rambled.

"We're coming in!" They heard Maria. There was a sound of the front door being kicked in, and the Elric brothers gasped.

"Get in, GET IN!" Out of urgency and panic, Edward dragged his younger brother into the bathroom, slammed the door behind them, and locked it.

Alphonse found himself suddenly in front of the girl wrapped in towel, and was blushing intensely down to the color of his soul. "S-sorry! I... A-are you okay?"

The homunculus regarded him with curious eyes, she was rather pretty up close for her flawless simple features, which only drove Alphonse further into embarrassment that his helmet was practically glowing pink.

"She's unable to speak right now," Caster informed, resting a hand over the homunculus' shoulder, "But with practice she will eventually talk as well as you and I."

"How about _not_ talking right now and shutting the hell up?!" Edward harshly whispered at the Caster, but unfortunately he was heard by the coming officers.

"Ed?! Is that you?! What happened?!" Maria yelled through the door, Denny stood beside her with equal amount of worry. "We heard screaming! Are you guys okay?!"

The door knobbed jiggled as the officers attempted to force themselves in, "Are you guys stuck?! Hold on, we'll get you out!"

"What?! No! Don't do that!" But Edward went unheard as the officers began to slam their bodies against the door. "Stop that! We're fine-!"

"Just hang in there! We'll bust the door down!"

Fearing just that, Edward clapped his hands and flimsily transmuted the door shut, but determined as the officers were to see the brothers safe, they resumed their attempt, breaking bit by bit the rushed sealing.

"Ohmygoshohmygoshohmygosh!" Alphonse returned his panicked chant.

"Crap crap crap crap!" The weight of impending disaster came onto him, and he fell to the ground, his body rolling around as he gripped his head, his assurance that they were fine could not be received through the noises of the officers struggling to get in. It was obvious that not one of them were thinking clearly. Not even Edward as he decided to push himself and Alphonse into the bathroom, rather shutting the door to hide the Servants and the homunculus while the brothers remained outside to prevent the officers from investigating any further. A stupid mistake Edward has already come to regret.

He knew that he had to hide the homunculus quickly, there was no reason to worry about the Servants as the men could willfully vanish into thin air, but there was rarely anywhere he could hide her here. The tub was an option but he couldn't be sure how long the homunculus could hold her breath without drowning her. Behind the shower curtains? No, they would see her feet. Maybe he could transmute a way out. No, it would take too long and would be far too noisy, he will also not let a girl wearing only a towel to just stand outside the building until he could convince the officers to leave. How in the world is he even going to explain the entire mess they were surrounded in? Even if they hid the homunculus, there was no time to clean up everything.

Maybe if Alphonse could stand in front of the girl and hide her with his body, or better yet...

"Quick! Al! Hide her in your body!"

Alphonse gasped, and protectively crossed his arms over his chest, his soul heating up, "What?! No way! We just met!" And she was only wearing _a towel_! He could never stay calm at that very fact! Questionable as he was for his existence, he at the very least knew how to be respectfully polite. There are boundaries that should never be crossed!

"This isn't the time to get flustered!" Edward said. "Your body is big enough to hide her! Out of the whole restroom, you're the best hiding spot we got!"

Agitated, embarrassed, and angry, Alphonse retorted without thought, "Well it's not like I asked for this body!"

Edward froze, shocked by Alphonse spiel of his feelings. At least until his flimsy sealing began to crack.

"They're almost in," Archer said neutrally but factually, as if that was to help somehow.

Edward bit back his urge to scream, but he did yell. "How about you guys actually do something to help?! Why the hell are you guys even still here if they can see you at any moment now!"

"Ed?! Who else is in there?!" Maria shouted.

"One more kick should do it!" Denny announced.

The Elric brothers shrieked, they rushed themselves to be in front of the homunculus, Archer, and Caster, hoping to block the sight of them, and the bathroom door was finally busted down.

Though the officers fell to the floor, their heads shot up and...

They stared. Wide-eyed.

"Th-this isn't at all... W-we can explain this!" Edward started, his arms outstretched no matter how futile it is to hide what was behind him - especially with his small figure. There was no response, the officers were staring in mild agape. "L-look, I admit. I wasn't entirely...honest with you...last night."

The Fullmetal Alchemist slowly lowered his hands. The officers were quiet. Unmoving. Unblinking. "Uh... Guys?"

"Lieu...Lieutenant Ross? Sergeant Brosh?" Alphonse regarded them nervously, but they did not answer his call. It's as if they were statues.

"No worries, I've placed them under a spell."

Caster informed the brothers, stepping away from the other Servant and homunculus. He had his hand up, two fingers and a thumb raised, and they were glowing in a sort of amber color.

"...You did what?" Edward looked him, baffled. He regarded the officers again, waving his hand in front of their faces. Not a single reaction gained. "What... You're doing this to them?"

"It's called a **Suggestion Spell** ," Caster explained. "I've influenced their senses and mind so that they do not recognize what they are seeing right now. You could say I've put them in a trance, and that they've fallen asleep."

The brothers gawked at the Caster, they spared a look to each other to confirm if they indeed heard the explanation correctly, and then eyed back at the officers.

"You...hypnotized them?" Edward felt his eye twitched before anger emerged. "Well what the hell?! Cut it out! They're our friends! You can't just... mind-control them! Are you actually mind-controlling them?!" How in the world is that even a possibility? He thought it was only just science-fiction!

"Your Caster just spared you an awkward moment of explaining yourself," Archer informed. "Truthfully, I suspected he had that sort of ability, why else would he remain? Which is why I too had stayed, since he would have everything in order." This was his reason, when in fact, Archer was too amused at the brothers reactions for him to leave so soon.

"Do you wish for me to wake them?" Caster asked, completely unbothered as his Master was. Edward did not know what to think about the man and his apparent ability, he was actually close to having something like an aneurism.

"OBVIOUSLY - No wait!" Edward looked at the homunculus, pure and confused as she first came to this world. He loudly growled behind his teeth, scratching his head and messing his blonde hair in pure frustration. "Just... Move her somewhere first! Where these guys won't see her! And find her some clothes!"

"I shall lead her to your bedroom then," Archer volunteered. He offered a hand for the homunculus who regarded it curiously before Caster told her to take it, and she followed his order. Archer led her out of the bathroom, his face still ridden with amusement at the stressful ordeal the brothers endured.

"I am deeply sorry for having placed you boys in an uncomfortable position," Caster apologized. He was actually sincere as his brows furrowed with hints of his regrets. "If I had known that homunculus creation was actually illegal... No, if only I had been more patient, and made my lab elsewhere, I would have never caused you two such distress. I am truly sorry for causing you trouble."

Edward glared at him, wondering if the Caster expected the apology to mean anything after the heart attack he and his brother endured because of his actions. Truly, to create a homunculus in his own bathroom, Edward might as well proclaim this man to be some kind of a mad scientist.

But at the same time, he was blown away. He was absolutely amazed. _A real homunculus..._ What scientists deemed to be impossible and a science too reckless as it provided an indefinite amount of moral questions and ethical reasoning, was done and accomplished in his bathtub of all places, by a man who was now looking at the brothers with a guilt-ridden expression for his otherwise maddening achievement. And to reveal his level of skills in Alchemy so nonchalantly, as well show that he could easily place people under hypnosis with just a lift of his fingers, it was a wonder just what else is this man capable of.

Edward frowned at the man who achieved the impossible, whose existence should be just as so. _Who the hell is this guy?_

After moving themselves around the stilled officers, Archer had taken the homunculus girl into another room, leaving her with the set of pajamas he found in the closet which the Archer had asked Edward about. Edward confirmed that they were his but seeing as how he'd rather not have her without clothes, he let the homunculus borrowed them for at least today.

"Don't you try doing anything weird or I'm kicking your ass," Edward warned Archer.

The navy blue man rolled his eyes, "I personally take offense to that. Abandon those obscene thoughts, I was raised a gentleman."

Once the homunculus was hidden, with Caster ordering her to not step outside from that room until the officers have left, the Elric brothers and the Servants were left wondering what to do with the dazed officers lying on the floor. The Elric brothers went to examine the officers, unable to prevent themselves from poking their faces, seeking any kind of a reaction.

"They're really out of it..." Alphonse noted, guilt troubling his conscience, "Are they going to be alright?"

Caster reassured Alphonse, grasping his shoulder, "They will. At the very least, once I wake them out of their trance, they will feel only slightly drowsy." He then placed his attention to the dirtied restroom, "Shall I clean this mess up? It shouldn't take too long."

The brothers looked at the room. It really was a mess, but having to let the officers remain this way just to offer them a chance of cleaning up. They could not think of it as anything less than selfish, simply wanting the officers out of their trance. "Can you wake them up first?" Edward asked.

The Caster blinked, mildly surprised, "I could, but are you sure? They'll wish to know what happened here, and I can make sure that they remember in a way that would provide you with more convenience. We could move them to the front door, and I could alter their memories, have them believe that they were merely stopping by for whatever reason."

 _Just what else is this guy capable of?!_ The brothers shared the same thought. Edward immediately interjects. "No. We're not doing that. I don't want you messing with their heads. Just let them be however they were. Me and Al will figure out the rest."

At the firm request, Caster nodded acceptingly, "Very well. Then shall Archer and I depart?"

That may as well go without say. Edward nodded, "One more thing, next time you want to just show up out of nowhere, or make a lab and a homunculus using whatever room we have, warn us beforehand!"

The Servants agreed. "Then until another time, young man." Archer addressed before making his leave, evaporating into gold dust and having Edward question his mental state once more.

 _Does that guy even know what my name is?_ Edward wondered.

"The officers will immediately return to normal," Caster informed. "Good luck, and again, I sincerely apologize for my actions."

The moment he entered his spirit form, the officers eyes blinked. "Ow... I think I hit my head or something..." Denny complained, he and Maria stood up to their feet.

The Elric brothers were quick to come to their side, "Are you guys okay? Do you... remember anything?" Edward asked them. The officers were confused with his question.

"What? We didn't hit our heads that badly, but never mind that! We should be the one asking about you boys!" Maria then noticed the room and was surprised. "What on earth happened to this place?"

"Holy-!" Denny also saw the mess. "Is this like a science project gone wrong or something?"

The brothers glanced at each other. Their arms locked to their side, their backs straightened, they looked at the officers dead in the eye. "That is exactly what happened!"

The officers stared at the brothers, blinking. "What?"

"W-well, we were doing an experiment, and then... it kind of blew up and went everywhere," Edward hurriedly made up. "That's what that scream was all about! It wasn't anything serious! We just... kind of freaked that you guys came and would end up scolding us." He then apologetically bowed his head, seeing him do so, Alphonse followed his example.

"We're really sorry for worrying you guys!" Edward loudly announced.

Alphonse nodded immensely, "Y-yeah! We're really sorry!"

The officers regarded the brothers' behavior before looking to each other and shrugged. "Well, as long as you guys aren't hurt," Maria said. "You really did scare us for a moment, we thought you two were in danger."

"Glad to see that isn't the case!" Denny said happily before his smile turned crooked. "U-um... Sorry about the door, actually, I think we broke down the front door too."

Edward readily assured them, "That's completely fine! I'll fix them without a problem! It's the least that I can do."

"Oh. Well that's good to hear!" Denny exclaimed. "You guys need any help cleaning up?"

The brothers did consider, it is a rather big mess, and then they heard a faint tap. Looking down to their left, there they find the jar hiding beside the towel rack, the pink flesh that Caster recently gave life to moving about in its jar. The Elric brothers paled.

"N-no! No no no! We got this covered!" Edward waved both arms to emphasized his refusal for their assistance, slowly stepping to the side, and using his foot to push the jar behind the toilet and out of view.

"Yes sir! Yes ma'am! Everything's under control!" Alphonse assured again and again. "Nothing to see- nothing to WORRY about here I mean! Everything's completely fine!"

"...Okay," Maria said, raising a brow at the brothers strange reaction. "If you guys say so."

The officers then recalled the reason they came here in the first place. Denny delivered the spoons Edward had bought and the Fullmetal Alchemist thanked him as steady of a voice as he could. After a brief chat, the officers left, bidding the Elric brothers well once more.

At the officers complete leave, the brothers sunk to the floor and sighed out in exasperation. Edward lay his stomach against the ground, pressing his face against the wooden floor, "Can't we get a break from all this craziness?"

* * *

Elicia's party went without any severity of a father threatening the children of boys with his gun for even looking at his daughter's way. Both Jeanne and Winry were able to calm him down right to the end of the party, and everyone went home. Talia Fumora stuck around and was enjoying rekindling old memories and friendship with Gracia Hughes. Maes Hughes was having just as much fun as Elicia quickly grew fond of Talia, and vice versa. It truly was impossible not to fall in love with the adorable little girl's sweet personality, especially when Elicia unwrapped Talia's gift and found herself a new stuffed animal, a cute baby tiger, much to the Maes Family's glee and Talia's embarrassment.

After a while, Jeanne thought to bring some of the leftover birthday cake for the Elric brothers. Hughes and Winry supported the idea, and prepared a plate and a big serving of cake for the two brothers (Jeanne and Winry said nothing of Hughes mentioning Alphonse's appetite, hoping to not cause suspicions from the lieutenant colonel). The girls then left for the hotel where the brothers were, and Hughes insisted for Jeanne and Winry's return - he has decided to also have Jeanne stay at his house after causing the widest smile he has ever seen on Elicia for her lovely prayer. Despite the Holy Maiden's protest, the lieutenant colonel could not be moved, and looked forward to _both_ of the girls' return.

Jeanne sighed, "The lieutenant colonel is very kind, but I feel that he may be somewhat..."

"Forceful? Overbearing? Likes to gush about his family a lot?" Winry listed off the few things she has noticed.

"...Eccentric," Jeanne kindly put. "I never minded how much he talks about his family, I think it's wonderful to hear the amount of affection he has for them."

"Same here!" Winry said happily. "He can go on just a little bit too long, but it's nice to see how much he loves his family."

She smiled at the sky, "He's a good man, a great father and husband."

Jeanne wholeheartedly agreed, she felt blessed that such a kind man would be so willing as to have her and Winry stay at his home, even though he did not quite ask for their say. They continued their walk, conversing all the while, until they reached a familiar block, and met with two familiar faces exiting the hotel.

"Oh! It's those officers!" Winry said as soon as she saw Maria and Denny, gaining the officers attention.

"Oh, hello there Jeanne, Winry," Maria greeted. "Coming to visit the brothers?"

"Yes, we thought to bring some food for them," Jeanne lifted the bag she has in hand. "Are they in their rooms?"

"They are. We just saw them after a bit of a misunderstanding." At the girls confusion, Denny reassured them, "It's nothing to worry about. You can go ahead and see them now if you want."

"That's right, but before that..." Maria faced the girls, and directly spoke to Winry. "I hope we haven't offended you earlier today. If we had, we sincerely apologize for it."

Winry remembered her earlier reaction, she slowly shook her head. "No... It's not your fault. I was angry at Ed and Al, but I'm not mad at them anymore. I should be the one apologizing actually."

"Really? That's a relief to hear," Maria said. "We were both worried that our presence caused some trouble between you and the boys. I hope you can take this to heart: even though the boys have shown themselves stubborn and at times reckless, they're in safe hands. Rest assured that if they do something stupid, we'll happily knock some sense into them."

Jeanne recalled the slap the officers did to the brothers and knew Maria's words is to be trusted. Winry was surprised to hear the dedication in Maria's tone and see Denny's firm expression. A smile of gratitude formed, "Thank you, both of you, for looking after Ed and Al. I guess there really isn't much to worry about when they have good friends close by."

With a look, Winry regarded Jeanne as well, inflating the Holy Maiden with an uplifting sense of joy and honor, and was returned a delighted expression.

After their talk, the girls and the officers said their farewells, and each pair resumed their way. Jeanne and Winry walked into the hotel and to the stairs, growing nearer to the Elric brothers whereabouts.

* * *

The Elric brothers cleansed most of the bathroom so that no evidence that a homunculus was created here, and fixed the doors that were broken into by the immense efforts of the lieutenant and sergeant. Absolutely unsure of what to do with the living flesh swimming in the jar, Edward decided to hide it behind the toilet until he can somehow figure out what to do with it. He and Alphonse had collected and dropped the measuring cups and utensils into the kitchen sink and let the items soak in soap water before deciding to take a break if only just to recompose themselves.

With this moment of peace, they struggled to completely acknowledge Caster's abilities, fearing what else that man could do. Not only that man, but perhaps even Archer has some hidden talents that would prove to be just as shocking, and Edward was not sure if he is prepared to demand knowing just yet. He knew for certain, however, that he and Alphonse were not dealing with ordinary men, as they have long thought to understand. The brothers underestimated how abnormal Archer and Caster truly were.

If it were any other officer that the Elrics did not know personally, and Caster had no done what he did while failed to convince that the girl was not a homunculus no matter the amount of evidence there was in the bathroom, the brothers would have been apprehended, Alphonse's condition would be found out and the brothers secret would have been exposed. That would have left them with two-life sentences for both crime. Edward felt his bitterness rising for the Caster who nearly put him in such a situation, and for Archer who simply watched while laughing on the inside.

Sitting on the couch, Edward then remembered something vital. Something that happened in the bathroom, from Alphonse in his brief fit of anger.

 _"Well it's not like I asked for this body!"_

Without a doubt, that was what he said. It ached Edward's heart to have it repeated in his head. Without another moment to lose, he turned to Alphonse, "Hey... Al? About what you said."

Alphonse looked at him, confused at first. "What I said?" He then instantly remembered, and lowered his head, "Oh... That."

Clenching his fist, Edward professed, "I know you never asked for that body. I put you through so much. But I swear Al, I'm going to get you your original body back." He stopped with sharp realization. Standing up, he angrily pointed at the ceiling, "HEY! If you guys are listening, DON'T! This is a private conversation between me and my brother! You hear me?!"

He did not care how insane he must have looked, so long as the message was sent and that neither Servant would overhear the brothers talk. Alphonse paid only little mind to Edward's show, and then solemnly whispered. "How can you be sure, Ed?"

Edward flinched, lowering his hand. "...I just have to, Al. I know this seems like a dead end, but with all the weird stuff happening around us, it might be a sign that we could find something to get you your body back. We just got to look for another way, that's all. It'll probably take another long time, but I know that I won't ever give up until I find something that'll help us both!"

Alphonse intakes every word from his _brother_ , and at last asked what he has been keeping to himself. "Ed... Am I a real soul?"

"...Huh?" Edward looked at Alphonse, unsure if he heard correctly. "Are you... a what?"

Alphonse tried again, this time he stood up and calmly faced Edward, "Am I a real soul? Was I even a real person?"

"W-what... what are you... where is this coming from?!" Edward assessed his brother, seeing if there was supposed to be a punch line of some sort. "You're...kidding, right?"

Alphonse' clenched his hand into a fist. "No, I'm not!" Straightening his posture, he wordily marched on to reveal every bit of his thoughts, "Look, a while back, you said you wanted to tell me something. Something that you were afraid to ask, and... I had to make a guess that it was about me, wasn't it?"

Barely a voice escaped Edward as Alphonse continued, "I had to really think about it. After we tried to bring back mom, how come I don't remember seeing the gates like you did? Or what you said you did. How come you would look at me and sometime look sad, or scared? Is it because you're worried that I might find out the truth about me?"

"The... truth about you?"

Frustrated that Edward may likely be acting clueless on purpose, Alphonse heatedly questioned, "How is it really possible for you, when you were just a kid, to have transferred a human soul into a suit of armor? How can you have been sure that nothing would go wrong? That my soul was the soul of the brother you _saved_? Or was it... was it the fact that you didn't need to worry, because you never had a brother to begin with?"

Edward's eyes widened.

"It's just like you said before, Ed. When we were in that storm, you said that it was possible to build souls out of experience in order to manifest the existence of someone. Isn't experience and memories just data that can easily be constructed to make a soul out of? We've already seen that it was possible, with Archer and Caster. They even told me that they knew they weren't the real person that they were, that their souls are just copies. Jeanne was the first to have said that! Well, isn't that what I am too? A counterfeit existence you created so that I could help you get back your arm and leg, and when you didn't take into account that I would have this much self-awareness that you had to put up an act, convince Winry and Granny Pinako to pretend that you were all my family so that I wouldn't freak out and rebel against you? Am I really just your familiar all this time?"

When Edward remained speechless, Alphonse looked to the ground, unable to keep eye-contact, "You know... Thinking about all that, I was angry, but I'm not that mad anymore. I can understand that you didn't intend to make me feel this alive, even as a suit of armor. You were just a kid back then. I honestly don't mind having lived this far in life, meeting with all the people we came across and befriended. Maybe you felt bad for me and thought that by giving me a false sense of hope that I was a human like you, that you wouldn't feel so guilty to have created a self-conscious being who was able to save you from dying. But I need to know the truth, Ed! I won't blame you, but I need to know! Am I really your familiar? Are we actually not real brothers?!"

At the conclusion of Alphonse's rant, there was not a peep from Edward. He silently stared, mouth partly open but otherwise, devoid of any expression. Then, he moved. He walked passed Alphonse, reaching the front door, and calmly left down the corridor without a single word that confirmed nor denied Alphonse' questions.

Alphonse was momentarily stunned, then quickly followed out to see where Edward was going, only catching a glimpse of the Fullmetal Alchemist's back before it turned around the corner, disappearing from his sight.

Was that it? No answer? That was all Edward could give Alphonse? What he needed the most and Edward refused to give it to him? Or... was Alphonse right all along?

There was an impact at the back of his head, Alphonse's helmet nearly tumbled out from his body before he quickly grabbed it and held it in place. He turned around, the cake slice slid from his head down to his back and fell to the floor with a splat.

Winry held her arm in front of her, her hand smeared in cake frosting and crumbs, disbelief and anger clouded her eyes, overflowing until the tears spilled. Jeanne stood beside her, shocked beyond words.

"YOU IDIOT!" Winry bellowed. They heard everything. They had just arrived when they heard something of a fuss happening on the other side, and stood by the door to listen rather than disrupt out of curiosity. From Alphonse' beginning line that questioned his existence to the very end. They heard it all, and could hardly believed it until Edward had left, failing to notice their presence. It was telling how upset he was.

"W-Winry?! You're here?! When did you-" Alphonse stuttered once he saw the girl begin to cry.

"You have _no idea_ how Ed feels! Do you want to know what he was so afraid to talk to you about?!" With one deep breath, she tearfully tells him, "He was scared to death that you blamed him for what happened to you!"

Alphonse's voice choked as Winry explained further, "When he first came to after that night you guys lost your bodies, the first thing he said was how sorry he was for what he'd done to you. He hated himself for what happened, and he was worried that you hated him too! He was crying for you, Alphonse Elric! He was crying for the torment he put his brother through, that he would _never forgive himself for it_! That's what he said! He gave up his arm to get you back you Big, Stupid, Jerk! He would rather die than lose you! Do you get it?! What kind of person would willingly trade in their own arm, their own _life_ , for some fake soul?!"

Alphonse gasped, comprehending to the last detail. It was true, even if it was to save his own life, to go as far as Edward has, it would be nonsensical to care so much for some counterfeit soul. With just her long-winded answer, everything Alphonse suspected fell apart, and he realized the truth. That he was real after all, he realized his fears were all for naught. He had been the fool all along.

With her arm, Winry wiped her tears away, "You know what you have to do!" She pointed down the corridor. "Now Go! Go and find your brother you idiot!"

It was a moment of processing before Alphonse snapped out of his horror for his mistake. Turning around, he hurried down the hall.

"Don't just hurry! RUN!"

Alphonse sprinted, "Y-yes ma'am!" He rounded the corner, and found stairs at the end with a sign beside it, informing that this way leads to the roof. Alphonse goes to it without hesitation, he goes to find his brother.

Jeanne could barely muster a word before she held her arms out for Winry. The poor girl was so devastated that Alphonse had such a cruel doubt, she could barely keep herself standing. "That idiot. And he thought I was part of that? Granny Pinako too? We would never do something like that! Not even for Edward." She sniffed, "That big dumb idiot, he just had to go and say all that. He'd better do everything to make it up to Ed."

Jeanne hugged her in comfort, and gazed down the hallway that the Elric brothers left through. _I never knew... just how much pain they kept to themselves..._

Despite knowing, or at least, attempting to comprehend the brothers level of suffering, it was far greater than she realized. Despite the selfishness that it was, she could not help but felt ashamed to have been so blind for what the brothers has pent up all this time. She was wrong to have thought them as simply strong, it was as Edward had stated in Marcoh's town, _she knew nothing_.

No matter if they were to have the most indestructible defense or are protected within an impenetrable fortress. No matter if they have an unbreakable shield, an ability that prevents any physical damage or wounds, or even possessed a item that grants temporary immortality. It did not matter if they had tough skin like that of Siegfried's **Armor of Fafnir** , or even if they had King Arthur's scabbard **Avalon**.

No human is invincible.

* * *

Edward stood in front of the stone wall that fenced the top of the building, looking over the edge for just anything interesting in sight, whether it was the streets, the building, or the people. Alphonse slowly climbed the stairs until he reached the roof, and found his brother at the wall. Edward did not turn to face him even as Alphonse grew closer. The younger Elric did not know what to say, he felt awful enough as it is, but then he figured he deserved this feeling, after falsely accusing Edward.

Alphonse tried to consider what he should say, and eventually, he knew he needed to apologize first and foremost. "Broth-"

"Come to think of it," Edward interrupted. "We haven't sparred in a while. After what happened in that storm, I've been wondering if I'm getting kind of rusty."

"Huh?" Alphonse watched as Edward turned around, and walked towards him before breaking into a light run, "Hey wait-"

Edward threw a kick for Alphonse's body. Alphonse quickly shifted himself into dodging the attack by a narrow margin. He then continued to move, dodging a series of kicks and punches from his older brother, backing away.

"B-brother! Wait! I was wrong! Hold on a minute!"

Edward rushed forward, and flung a fist. Alphonse barely blocked it with his arm, and then the older Elric ducked. He pushed his feet in between Alphonse's, and kicked the heel, disrupting Alphonse's balance. Edward jumped, and landed a powerful kick with his automail leg, striking against Alphonse' chest. The younger Elric had nearly fallen, but as soon as he looked back at his brother, his vision was suddenly blinded with a shoe of all things. Edward had removed it just as soon as he landed, making use of whatever advantage he can conduct, and pushed Alphonse to the ground with his whole body. The younger Elric fell with a yelp, hitting the ground as Edward pushed and flipped himself over, he landed on his feet with a heavy breath.

"You see that?!" Edward yelled in triumph. "I'm still standing. This is the first time I've ever beaten you!"

Alphonse stared at the blue sky, seeing the white puffy clouds roll by, "That... wasn't fair at all. You caught me by surprise."

Edward regained his shoe, breathing to regain his stamina and wiping the sweat from his forehead. "Shut it. A win is a win!" He then sat down near Alphonse, and lay his back against the ground. "...We've fought a lot, don't we? Ever since we were little."

"...Yeah," Alphonse answered. "We do."

"Thinking back on it now," Edward said. "We fought over some stupid things."

Alphonse agreed, a faint chuckle echoing, "Like who gets to sleep the top of the bunk beds. We even fought over candy..."

"Yeah..." Edward smiled in reminiscence, "And remember when we fought over a toy once?"

"I won that one," Alphonse felt it necessary to point out, before continuing down to memory lane. "And when we were playing by the River Rain too."

"I got pushed into the river, didn't I?" Edward expected the lack of response to that, but did not mind it.

"We fought while we were training, too, right?" Alphonse asked.

Edward nodded, "Teacher told us we were making too much noise and beat us half to death. That one was a draw."

"Well, Teacher was the one who won." Alphonse then remembered another funny moment, "Do you also remember us fighting over which one of us was going to marry Winry?"

"W-what?!" Edward sputtered, "I don't remember that."

"I won. But then she shot me down."

"Oh, yeah?" The embarrassment subsiding, Edward then sadly asked, "And you're telling me that all those memories, the good times and even bad, they were all just lies?"

"I'm sorry," was Alphonse' immediate response.

"Al, I don't care if you tell me that you won't get mad for being fake. But if you really mean that, then are you saying that your feelings of wanting to get your body back, no matter what it takes, is also fake?"

Alphonse shook his head, "It's not fake."

Edward clenched his hand tightly, "That's right. The two of us decided that we'd get back to normal together." he raises his fist for the sky, his brother joining him, and he declared their renewed determination. "We're gonna keep on pushing forward. Push forward and make our hearts and fighting skills stronger."

"...Even if it means drinking milk?"

Edward was aghast, a sickening expression that paled his face. "I'll... Guh! If it gets us our body back then... I'll drink... as much as I can..." He lowered his fist and offered it to Alphonse, "So let's go get much, much stronger."

Alphonse brought down his hand, and fist bumped his brother, "Right."

There really are some things people could indeed communicate and understand, even without needing to say the words out loud.

"...So what now?" Alphonse asked. "Where do we go from here?"

Edward had been asking himself this question constantly. If the Philosopher's Stone would not due, then what other means of retrieving their bodies could they investigate? Then again, for how sure would it be that the same result would not repeat itself? That it requires a heavy price for their personal gain.

He thought to answer when they heard the creak of the door leading back down the stairs. Looking aside, there stood Jeanne, nervous yet vastly concerned. She quietly squeaked for accidentally disturbing the brothers content moment, and thought to hide behind the door a little longer.

"...Hey Jeanne."

Alphonse looked over to who Edward was referring to. "Oh, Jeanne. Right, you were with Winry just now, weren't you?"

Jeanne slowly came out, intertwining her fingers meekly. "Please forgive me for disturbing the both of you. I was worried and...I-if you want, I could go back and get Winry. She offered to let me check on you boys but-"

Edward waved his hand, "It's fine. We got everything we needed out anyway."

Alphonse sat up, his tone regretful, "I'm really sorry for causing you and Winry to worry, especially after what I've done."

"Then, are you both alright?"

The Elric brothers nodded. "Yeah, we're good," Edward affirmed, sitting back up.

"I see... That's a relief to hear," Calmer now, Jeanne smiled lightly. But soon, a frown takes place. "Do you still intend to seek out another way to restore your bodies?"

Edward sighed, "That's the plan, but we don't know where to start, and that's not even the only issue." Ushering her to come closer, Jeanne closes the door behind her and walked up to them. She sat on her knees as Edward spoke his next concerns, "I'm wondering what the hell am I going to do with those two guys; Archer and Caster. You know earlier today they nearly gave me and Al a heart attack?... Uh, no offense."

"None taken," Alphonse assured. Even he was frightened for what happened.

Jeanne tilted her head in questioning, "What do you mean?"

The Elric brothers paused for a moment, sharing a look to one another. Do they even tell her? it is true that they have already told her a few of their secrets, and even Jeanne was part of a bigger one. But Edward shook his head, "Th-that doesn't matter, I'll probably tell you another time." It was not at all recommendable that he informed her of the homunculus girl while they were outside like this.

"Getting back to what I'm talking about, I'm not sure how to feel about two ghosts following me just cause I have these things on my hand again," Edward raised the gloved hand that hid his two set of Command Seals. "I'm still weird out at the fact that there's this Holy Grail War going on."

Jeanne nodded in understanding. He obviously would have not so quickly adjust to the idea of his position even after a day. He likely would wish to cut ties with the war even more now, after everything that has happened. If so, then this is her chance.

"Ed," Jeanne began. "You still have the right to avoid participating in the war, even with the Commands Seals on you again and having your Servants, I can still revoke your seals so long as you want this."

"Does that mean we have to go back to that creep of a priest?" There was disgust in the Fullmetal Alchemist's face and tone.

Jeanne was quiet at first, "...No. To be frank, I don't entirely trust that Father Kotonelm is following all the regulations to the best of his abilities as an Overseer should. I cannot blame him for being placed in a difficult position after being discovered by the military, but I feel that by following the commands of the Blue Faction, even if he is doing all that he can as Overseer, it will inevitably cause too much issues that cannot be easily resolved. I do not think that relenting your Seals to him, and giving away your Servants, would be the best course of action."

"Then what are we supposed to do?" Edward asked her. "Do you honestly want me to just keep them around?"

Jeanne shook her head, "No. Having Servants with you would only attract Masters who will see you as a competitor to fight. Instead of us returning to Father Kotonelm, I want you to give your seals to me."

The brothers looked at her in surprise. Edward frowned, "I thought you said you didn't want the Grail?"

"I don't. Because of my position, I am not allowed to fight as a participant in this war. But my intention is to not fight for the Grail, it's for the war," she gazed at her knees. "I've underestimated how much loss of control the state of this war is in, and by myself, I cannot properly do what I must. Even my powers are being restrained and cannot be utilized to their fullest affect. I cannot work to return stability to this war on my own, and ensure that no one outside of it will remain unharmed. I need help."

Jeanne pointedly declared, "I need allies, other Servants who will help me in my journey. That's why I want you to give your seals to me. Your Servants will be able to help me what I cannot do alone, and by doing this, you won't need to partake in the war, but you will have to be very careful regardless. An attack on Central City like last night is likely to happen again, and it may not be the only place. I aim to stop the people who wish to cause that amount of disaster, and so I need more power. I need your Servants, Ed."

Edward gazed down to his hand, he reached in, and pulled his glove off. The six Command Seals, bold and prominent as ever. "You really need help that badly?"

Jeanne nodded, "I do. I know the offer from the military is something to consider, but after what you found in the Fifth Laboratory, and your theory about the Blue Faction having a connection to the creation of the Philosopher's Stones, I do not have the confidence to trust them, even if there is only one culprit, I might not be able to tell who, and they will surely silence me if I try."

She closed her eyes for a moment, "No, I cannot ask for their help. I do not condemn the entire military, there are good soldiers that I feel I can trust, but I should not involve myself with them, and drag soldiers into a war they have no hope of winning or surviving with just their rifles and little armor. It is better that I start my own group, and go from there."

Jeanne had considered the weight of her request, and so added, "You've seen Archer and Caster's powers. It is a tall order that I ask you to entrust those men under my care, but I do not intend to cause any harm. I only wish to stop the group terrorizing Amestris, then once that group is dealt with, I may have their assistance for a little while longer until the war is nearing its conclusion. But trust that I will not allow a civilian harmed, or for any Masters and Servants in the war to cause harm. You have my word."

Her speech is sincere, and her eyes gleamed with determination. The Elric brothers regarded each other for almost a long moment. They nodded, reading their thoughts clearly.

"...I guess it can't be helped," Edward said. Jeanne let out a small breath, and started to voice her gratitude. "We'll just have to come along."

"...Eh?" Jeanne blinked twice. "W...What?!"

"We're coming with you," Edward re-stated. "If it really is that bad, then you can't expect us to just turn away from it. If you're right that Central City, or any other place is in danger, you really think we'll just let you go deal with all that yourself and be on our way like _nothing bad_ is happening around us?"

When Jeanne didn't respond right away, Edward added, "Besides, even though I want nothing to do with this war, this Holy Grail has gotten my attention after giving me these seals again. I want to find this Grail, and see just how much of a miracle it can actually grant."

If there existed a conspiracy with the Philosopher's Stone and the government, he wants to see what conspiracy is there for the Holy Grail. No matter how he looked at it, even if the original intention of the Grail was to lead only one person to _the Truth_ as Jeanne had explained in East City, Edward doubted that it could really accomplish that much. But if it truly could, the idea of it sends chills throughout his entire body. Nothing good can come out of forcing the Gates of Truth to open.

"B-but I thought you didn't want anything to do with the Grail. You said so after finding out what it takes to power it!" Jeanne retorted, still comprehending what Edward had just said.

Edward nodded, "I still don't want it. I'm not using anything that's been swallowing souls, regardless if those souls are real or not..." As soon as it left his mouth, he frowned, "Not real souls...Is that really what the Grail is just being filled with?"

Alphonse looked his way, curious to hear what Edward meant by that. The older Elric met his gaze, "Al, when you told me that you were worried about being a counterfeit soul, I was angry at first, but now, that got me thinking. The theory of counterfeit souls, before they are fully formed, is that they're scrambled data and information without sentience, the kind that I don't know how to make, but it isn't impossible." He then asked Jeanne, "You told us that these Servants are mostly made out of... what was it? Prana! Back in East City, you said that that's what they're made out of, that it was a type of energy."

Jeanne was shocked that he was able to recall that little detail after weeks has passed and a series of events that happened afterwards.

"Actually..." Edward continued, speaking his thoughts openly. "I noticed that the Grail and the Philosopher's Stone are almost the same with where they get their power, and what they're supposed to do; bypassing the laws of Alchemy, but unlike the Stone, the Grail is using counterfeit souls. I'm not saying that those Servants we've seen aren't as alive as you and I, but before they... came through that whole _summoning ritual_ or whatever, what were they before someone decided to make them a person? What exactly _is_ Prana?"

Jeanne contemplated his question, barely recovering from Edward's earlier statement, "Well... Prana is what circulates the system of living beings, but its not just living beings, Prana can also be found in the air, the ground, even in some elements. Before the Servants would form, they were simply masses of energy without identity. They... We were never alive until the summoning called us from the Throne of Heroes."

"The Throne of Heroes?" Alphonse asked.

Jeanne explained, "It is an afterlife of a sort, where people who've accomplished great feats, made legends and history, are recorded in the World. It's very much like a gateway to _the Truth_ , or _the Root_ as all magus believes, everything that is known about the person, is collected and transferred to the Throne of Heroes upon their deaths, and it is where the Grail would receive the identity of whatever hero would be called forth."

The Elric brothers were amazed to hear that, Edward reflected her answer seriously, "If it really is anything like the Gates of Truth... Wait, in East City, you said that the people who made the Grail started this Holy Grail War because there wasn't enough of the Grail for all of them to use. That means the Grail was already completed, wasn't it?"

Jeanne confirmed, "Yes. The Grail was already completed, they only needed to activate it in order for only _one_ to use it."

"Did it need to kill a bunch of people for it to work?" It was a blatant question that Edward actually almost spat in anger.

Jeanne shifted her sitting position, consciously aware of her growing unease, "... No. It did not. Not at first anyhow, before the war was made."

"Then how did they make it? What was the Grail before someone decided to make this whole war?" Edward's eyes shimmered with curiosity and a hint of hope that was slowly brimming with anticipation. It was a sight Jeanne would have encouraged, if not for the immensely disturbing notion of what his hope may mean.

Jeanne slowly shook her head, "While I was not allowed to understand how the Grail was constructed step by step, I do know what the Grail was made out of... Pure Prana." She should say no more, she shouldn't say beyond this. She _knows_ where this will lead to.

But with a heart that held an affinity for the brothers, she could not evade nor lie to either of them. "Despite its name, the Grail is actually formless, but it exists, made through several decades of concentrated energy that could indeed bypass or even surpass the laws of reality."

Amazed, the brothers shared a look, equally wondering the very same thing. Edward was the one to ask, "That Grail, before the Holy Grail War was made, were human lives, or any life, used as part of its construction?"

Jeanne wanted to seal her own mouth, but she could not deflect those bright and hopeful eyes of the brothers, "Before the Three Families of Magi decided that declaring the Holy Grail War was the best way to settle their argument before they followed the method of swallowing the prana of the perished Servants... There have been multiple ways of gathering prana to make the Grail, but none of them involved using human lives, or any lives for that matter, when they were constructing the Grail."

The brothers expressions enlightened while Jeanne's darkened, as shown with her tightly gripping her dress. But her sympathetic kindness could not reject the good feeling it brought her at the brothers distinct happiness to this new found discovery.

"That's it... This is it, Al!" Edward excitedly rose to his feet as Alphonse did the same. "We found another way! This is what we've been looking for!"

"And we don't have to use human lives or souls or anything like that! We can get our bodies back without having to take from somebody!" Alphonse was bouncing with joy.

Jeanne also stood up, but she did not share their enthusiasm. "But the creation of the Grail was not a simple matter," she told them sternly. "It took the Three Families decades, centuries perhaps, to complete the first form of the Grail."

"So we'll find a way to speed up the process," Edward said with optimism, brimming with life like never before. "We just need to figure out how they built that Grail. No wars. No Servants. Just the Grail in our own backyard."

"It's not that simple!" Jeanne yelled, her patience thinning with worries of where this is escalating towards. "If it were, I would have happily told you how the Grail was made long ago to help you both. If it really were that simple, this war wouldn't have been necessary! But the knowledge is locked from me, only one of the Families would know but they do not expose their secrets to anyone, and even for what I know about the Grail, it is a highly complex creation that even I cannot fully understand!"

"Then we'll just have to find the Grail that's already been made," Edward left Jeanne speechless by his simple solution. "Don't get me wrong, I'm not using that thing filled with the souls of those Servants, but if it used to be something that didn't need souls, then I want to get a good look at it. I want to know how it's made, and if I can figure out how it works, then we can make one for ourselves."

He abruptly stepped close in front Jeanne, startling her. "Jeanne, you have to let us come with you! You said that you needed help, well now that we know what you're doing is a chance for us to get our bodies back, we're _definitely_ coming with you. You have to take us to the Grail!"

"I-I can't lead you to the Grail!" Jeanne moved away, feeling her own heart beating with trepidation. "I don't know how to locate it at the moment. It's only when the Grail is ready to grant a wish, or is coming close to it, that I would be informed of its whereabouts and see through its activation."

"Then we'll stick with you until it does," Edward pressed. "Jeanne, please! This is our next best chance! This might be our _ONLY_ chance! We don't want to fight in the war, we don't even want to use that Grail, we just want to see how it works! Besides, you said it yourself, you need help, and if Alphonse and I go with you-!"

"No you _mustn't_!" Jeanne yelled, in a tone that actually frightened the boys. She was close to summoning her flag and striking the bottom of the staff to the ground just to emphasize her point of frustration and terror. "It's far too dangerous! I am a target for the Red Faction who has multiple Servants! If you come with me, you'll be caught in the cross-fire and could get killed! I am aware that as a soldier you have lived through life and death situations, but in this case, it is far more than what you or Alphonse are prepared for. You cannot come with me! I know how much this means to you, I really do! But it's just too dangerous, I will never forgive myself if something were to happen to the both of you! Think about Winry, Pinako, everyone who cares about you! Would you really want to cause them so much heartaches and worries?!"

"...Jeanne, do you honestly believe we don't already think about our friends every day we go out risking our lives?" Edward's challenged. "When we started this journey, we knew full well that we might end up getting killed, we have to be aware of that fact every time we go out traveling. But it doesn't matter what kind of danger is waiting for us, we're willing to endure anything thrown in our way if it means getting our bodies back. We wouldn't stop even if it ends up killing us."

 _That... That isn't normal thinking! You shouldn't think like that!_ Jeanne wanted to say, but Edward resumed before she could say a word. "We're doing whatever it takes to get back what we lost, and more than anything, I want Alphonse to feel again, to have a body and enjoy life the way he should, I want him to enjoy the things you and I take for granted, and I'm not stopping even with the Holy Grail War or anything worse than that come in our way."

"Brother..." Alphonse was so touched, he wished he had the ability to cry. Instead, he followed up Edward's determination with his own, "I'm not stopping either, not for anything, even if it's terrifying, I'll face it if it means that I won't just get back my body, but my brother's arm and leg."

Jeanne could not find an appropriate retort to sway this brothers, it pained her to acknowledge once more of Alphonse's condition, that he could not feel the same pleasure as humans do, to feel as alive as they should. She could not argue with their goals, but surely she could not encourage the brothers to actually lay down their lives either! What would be the point if they perished midway? Nothing, they would die for nothing. She did not want to be in the way of their goal, it is a truly admirable goal that she prayed for their success, but this...

"Look, I'll be upfront," Edward suddenly said. "Even if you say no, we're coming anyway. I won't deny you asking for Caster and Archer, but you're not turning us away."

"E-excuse me?!" At his blatant remark, Jeanne's cheeks flushed with anger.

"Like it or not, even if you try to escape us, if you really can't go on without these seals I have, then we'll just go ahead and end up fighting in this stupid war. I'm not gonna kill any Masters or Servants, that's not my intention, but I _will_ look for the Grail, even if I don't know how to find it by myself."

Jeanne closed her fingers, digging into her palms as her fist tremble. He would dare to endanger himself this far? Throw himself into the fray? She thought he was more rational than that! Jeanne is normally a quiet and calm individual, she never liked violence and never would wish to start one, nor does she liked to be so angry at anyone even if they were the vilest person alive, but right now... right now...

 _He's making me so angry, I want to poke his eyes in!_ It was an embedded habit of hers that she would occasionally let out around her comrade Gilles whenever he would do something particularly disliking, such as openly confessing that he would prefer praying to her than he would to God. That sort of blasphemous comment earned him one finger jab right into each ball within his socket. Her fingers twitched, and she mentally debated if she should do the same to Edward for his show of recklessness that was too much for her to ignore.

"Listen, it's not just us we're fighting for." Edward added, her eyes narrowed sadly, "There's someone else who needed help, just as much as we do. Someone who needed something like the Philosopher's Stone to get her back how she originally was."

Alphonse lowered his head, immediately saddened at the mention of Nina. Seeing the change in the brothers' attitudes, Jeanne's anger dissipated and she observed carefully.

"Her name is Nina," Edward began. "She's this little girl we met a while ago. A sweet innocent kid whose only friend was her dog, Alexander. We were meeting her dad; Shou Tucker, who could give us information about getting us back to normal, but that _so-called_ father was about to have his State License revoked. He couldn't reach the deadline of showing another alchemical breakthrough that kept his State Alchemist privileges, so you know what he did?"

Edward's eyes clouded with emotion, steeling himself, he revealed the horrible fate of the innocents, "That man experimented on his own daughter and merged her with Alexander. He turned her into a chimera, just so he can keep his license."

Jeanne gasped in shock.

"We were there, we saw her as a chimera. We didn't realize it at first, we were just too blinded with awe that a hybrid was there before us, that it could talk like a human. I was so oblivious until... it called me "Big Brother." That was what _Nina_ would call us, and that's when I also noticed the white dog fur that was so much like Alexander's... That's how I found out it wasn't just her, it was _both of them_."

"Oh my lord..." Jeanne whispered. She could not imagine the horror. An innocent little girl, used as a chimera experiment by her own _father_?

"You know what's just as bad? A year ago, Nina's mother went missing, that bastard Tucker said his wife left him, but it didn't take too long for me to connect the dots; how he made his _chimera_ from last year, the very chimera who later died by starving herself because she didn't want to stay like that any longer. That bastard of a husband used his own wife just so he could keep being a State Alchemist, now this time he did it again with his own daughter!"

He calmed after a breath, though in his soul he was still seething. "After we arrested Tucker, Nina was taken in by the military so that she could be helped, but we knew the horrible reality. There was no way to turn her back to normal, not with the level of Alchemy we have today. But... we figured there _was something_ we could do to save her."

"The Stone..." Jeanne easily concluded, much to her sadness.

Alphonse nodded, continuing for his brother, "We thought we could use the stone to save Nina, as soon as we were able to find it. But then, we learned the truth. Not only that, back in East City, the time after Shou Tucker was arrested and Nina was taken in by the police, Mr. Tucker was murdered while in custody, and Nina went missing. We have no idea where she is, or where she could be, but she must be terrified! It's been almost a month since she disappeared. We want to find her so badly! Even if someone does end up finding her, they'll just take her where she was supposed to be sent."

"At a lab where she'll be experimented on for the rest of her life, or however long she has to live with what she is now," Edward darkly revealed. "Jeanne, even if we have all the time in the world, Nina probably doesn't. Even if you can say that you don't want us to get hurt, can you really stop us from doing something that might just save a little girl?"

"Please Jeanne! You have to take us with you!" Alphonse begged. "It isn't just us we want to get back to normal, it's for our friend too! I want us to save our friend as soon as we can, and this might be the only way we'll know how!"

The brothers dropped to their knees, they pressed their palms and their heads against the ground. They shouted to the top of their lungs, "Please! Let us come with you!"

Jeanne stood there, astonished. The tale of Nina, her mother, and their family dog, left the Holy Maiden's heart numbed with sorrow, just as so for the Elric brothers who had their part in witnessing the tragedy of what sounds to be a very dear friend of theirs. There was more to their desire for a way to restore what they lost, it was also for someone besides them. An innocent child. What happened to Nina was harrowing, and for the brothers to have hope that following Jeanne may rescue their friend from her terrible fate. That was their selflessness, in truth, the brothers and the girl name Nina have suffered horribly, there was no greater suffering than the other, they all deserve a chance to find peace from their circumstances. But to see how much more willing the brothers were to help a friend than themselves, it nearly brought Jeanne to tears.

She also realized how hypocritical she was to say that they must not risk themselves so much, even for the sake of something. Was Jeanne not the same when she joined the Hundred Year War? Did she not once thought that she was likely to die the same year she had joined the war? Of course she had, and she still joined regardless of the outcome, all for the sake of hoping to appease the Lord's tears for his dying children. She had been accused as a witch, an enemy, and even a foolish girl whose faith abandoned her, Jeanne was not moved by any of the accusations thrown in her way, because her decision was hers alone, and she had not regretted since then.

This is the same situation she sees the Elric brothers are facing. They have made their choice, no matter the possibility that it will lead to their deaths. It was this reason that Jeanne felt she could not turn them away, they would merely follow her regardless, and even if Edward were to give her his seals and she leaves them behind, they will simply involve themselves in the midst of the Holy Grail War, for the one thing that may be what they needed, for themselves and for a friend.

Seeing their resolve, Jeanne takes a breath.

"...Very well." There was no use in saying no, not with these boys. The brothers lifted their heads, they started to smile widely but Jeanne raised her hand. "However, if you are going to follow me, there are rules to follow. But before I tell you, I need to speak directly with Archer and Caster."

"You have our complete attention, Ruler."

The Elric brothers jumped to their feet at the voice of Archer, appearing right behind them alongside Caster.

"I'm sure you have heard most of our conversation, have you not?" Jeanne asked them.

"We have," Archer confirmed. "Although the boy asked us not to overhear his talk with his younger brother, there was nothing said about listening in their conversation with you, Ruler."

"Goddammit, stop doing that!" Edward yelled at them. "And what did I just tell you? Use the _freakin door_!"

"Apologies, friend," Caster said before addressing Jeanne, "From what we saw, you had wished for only our assistance, but these brothers managed to convince you to include them as well."

"Remarkably said at that, I must add," Archer complimented. "To risk your lives for not only yourselves but for a little girl. You two are quite a pair of knights in shining armor." Though it sounded terribly like he was mocking them, it was actually a genuine comment from the impressed Archer. Edward did not care for either and merely glared at him.

"We're not trying to be heroes," the Fullmetal Alchemist said. "We're just doing what's right. No one deserves a fate like that, especially not Nina."

"A matter of saving someone; that is what a hero is, young man," Archer counters. "At least, one of the many definitions for that word, but never mind that. Ruler has asked for our presence, and here we are."

Jeanne nodded, "Firstly, I must ask you both. What are your wishes for the Holy Grail?"

Despite the question not being directed towards the Elric brothers, they were caught off-guard nonetheless, suddenly aware of the crucial fact. Jeanne had told them that the Holy Grail has the ability to grant each one wish for the Master and Servant. If Servants are allowed to have a wish, then what are Archer and Caster's? The brothers looked at the men, awaiting their answers curiously.

"My wish is to complete what I could not in life," the Archer was the first to answer. "A World System which interacts electrical currents that come and go through space itself, and with it, humanity will further advance itself and its technology through the power of electricity. That is what I desire to accomplish, although, I too am admittedly curious about how the _almighty wish-granting vessel_ functions. An intriguing research subject, if you will."

"As for me," Caster began after, "I also have a wish, though, perhaps it's safer to say I have a few of them. I'm still deciding which one I would like granted the most, since they all equally mean much value to me, but without a doubt, I would like for the many accomplishments I have left behind to continue developing the world Archer and I hail from, proceeding the evolution of modern medicine and the practice of Magecraft, and to be loved by "future generations" who have read my work and all other practitioners of Alchemy."

The Elric brothers were actually rather surprised by the answers of Archer and Caster. One with a wish of ambition to advance mankind, and the other a wish for medical improvements, if they were to truly consider that these men were, in fact, someone who has lived once, they would have been convinced that these men must have been impressive individuals of grand accomplishments. Of course, Edward being as he is, found himself skeptical to how these men truly believe if the Grail will grant their wish as they hope it will... or perhaps this should only emphasize that the Grail is indeed a powerful object. But all will be known for certain once he locates and examines the inner workings of the Grail.

Jeanne nodded as she hears their wishes. "Your wishes are of great ambition and noble purposes, and to gain a sense of self-satisfaction; there is nothing wrong with that. A wish is a wish that must be regarded with the highest respect, and that is what I hold for both of you. Archer. Caster." Her eyes unveiled soft guilt, but she spoke firmly, "Which is why what I am about to ask of you is no less a selfish demand, but a demand that concerns not solely for the war, but for this entire country."

Edward and Alphonse were completely caught off-guard at the sight of Jeanne's behavior and manner. She spoke to the men with such cool and gentle authority, firmer than the softly-spoken girl they have thought to have known. It was almost intimidating, but she was nothing short of her existing compassion, companied with her ever warm presence.

"This war is in disarray. The vast number of Masters and Servants, surpassing the original number of competitors allowed to participate, have made my duties as Ruler too overwhelming. It has left me stagnant, and therefore, I will not be able to prevent this war from escalating into catastrophic levels. But there is a much worse matter happening, there is a group known as the Red Faction who has been terrorizing the country, killing civilians and soldiers alike. They are consisted of several Servants, possibly even more. Despite my powers as Ruler, I cannot face them alone while keeping focus towards the rest of the war."

"Therefore, you need allies," Archer surmised. "While two Servants alone seems rather small, I suppose any number would do if it means fulfilling your duties much easier."

"The state of this war has proven my job difficult, yes, but that is not the main issue. I need allies who will fight with me to cease the actions of the Red Faction, and I intend to look out for more Servants along with their Masters to fulfill this quest. However..." Jeanne looked to the brothers, involving them with what she says next, "If we are to join and work together for the purpose of defeating the Red Faction and bestowing order to the war, then to follow my banner, I'm afraid that I must ask you two-"

"To momentarily put aside our pursuit for the Grail, as following and fighting alongside Ruler - a Servant meant not to pursue the Grail for herself - would require that much if you are to still uphold your duties without an attempt to contradict them," Archer easily figured. "I will say, though I have my ambition, this Red Faction certainly has a rather immense lack of prudent for directing an assault on an entire city. Even if I do not hold much heart for a world that is not mine, the Red Faction would have been an inevitable obstacle."

"Of course, whether this is our world or not, the lives of innocents hold equal value," Caster said intently, a firm expression, "They will have to be stopped if anyone is to be any safer from the escalation of this war's anomaly."

The children of Alchemy must be protected, this country who holds so much love for the practice must be saved, and of course, no life should be so swiftly taken by the cruel actions of others, though he wondered why such actions occurred to begin with?

"We understand the weight of your proposal, Ruler," Caster added, "An anomaly at this extent could indeed grow into catastrophic levels, and I doubt anyone would have a chance for the Grail at that point."

"Indeed," Archer agreed, and spoke for the both of them, "Seeing that Caster and I have comprehended your situation, I shall be willing to put aside my goal, and once the Red Faction is dealt with, should you require further of our assistance, I am open for re-negotiations, but we shall see until then."

"That sounds fair," Caster nodded with Archer's proposal. "I too shall put my wish on hold, I very much would rather see this world of Alchemy preserved than wrecked. I would like to say you have my full support, however..."

"That is up to our Master," Archer looked over to Edward who was listening to the men with intense focus, he flinched at the man addressing him.

"...What, me?" Edward pointed at himself. "Why do you guys need my approval? Just do whatever you want, don't be bothered by me just cause I have this tattoo on my hand. I'm not gonna use them against you."

"It's to confirm our mutual understanding, young man," Archer said. "You may say now that you have no interest in the Grail, but what then will you do when you actually face it? Will you be so enticed by the Grail's power that you would be willing to reach out and cast your wish?"

"I am _not_ going to use a Grail that's been filling up with souls, it's the same reason for the Philosopher's Stones, no life is worth using or taking for our own benefits," Edward strongly declared. "And if you were actually listening to us while hiding, then you already know that I'm coming with her whether she agreed or not."

"But there's more you have to be willing to follow if you wish to come with me," Jeanne interjects, taking a step forward closer to Edward, gratifying her next rule. "By following me, not only must you not intend to use the Grail, you must not enter battle against a competing Master and their Servant, not unless they are the ones who attacked you first or unless they are under violation."

She asserts, "You must not compete for the Grail, you must not compete against other competitors without just cause, and you must follow my directions. This also extends to your Servants. I know you are not comfortable with it, but you are the keeper of their seals, the seals that have a hold to their will, they are obligated to come to you unless something prevents them so. But they are looking to you for confirmation as their Master, if you truly do not mind that I would order them the same way a Master would guide his Servants, rather than follow you or only you. Even as Ruler, they have a duty to listen to the one who has summoned them."

Edward actually felt the weight of her explanation, and he did not like it one bit. "It's not like I even meant to call them..." He scratched his head in frustration, "...Look, how about this. If we're ever in a situation that cuts off our communication with each other, like maybe we're too far away or something, then we have to rely on our own gut instincts or ideas to decide what to do, not wait for someone like you or me to tell them what to do every moment they're there."

He added, "I can't always come to you for everything, neither can Al. If there's something we have to do, then we're doing it. If it's something bad, whether it has something to do with the Grail War or not, that shouldn't matter. We're stepping up to do something about it. But it's not like I'm looking for a fight with anyone that's a part of this war, so I can agree with you on that. But no one has the right to control anyone's will, alright?"

The three Servants observed Edward with a separate array of emotions, Jeanne was moved by his passion for the life of an individual, even extending that to those who were not entirely human-like these Servants. Archer held a twinkle in his eyes, a sense of mirth at the sight of the boy's level of respect for anything he sees as a person, and quite frankly, a great convenience for him even with his already granted conveniences as an Archer servant. Caster shared both Jeanne and Archer's reaction, smiling at the boy's speech, and all the more eager to bond with this boy who, as it turns out, will be accompanying on this journey after all.

Without a doubt, Edward will be the most improper Master to allow this much freedom for his Servants. He is, in fact, a genuinely decent human being, and no one around him held any argument to his proposal.

"You made a good point," Jeanne said. "I suppose if it comes down to it, it would be useless to await every order."

Archer mildly laughed, "I suppose I should hold no objections to that. As an Archer, I don't need to worry over something so trivial, but I am pleased to know we are standing on common ground, Edward."

Yes, it is purely factual, Archer is going to like accompanying this boy. If this boy does not wish to see or order his Servants as such, then he will be more than happy to guide the young man and his brother throughout the war as their instructor, and have them bear witness to his magnificent genius and power that purely exists to dazzle and awe, to create and re-create; in the name of science.

Caster could not agree more. It is without argument, he will protect the Elric brothers with all of his talents and skills, and throughout their journey together, he cannot wait to explore with them the many wonders of Alchemy. _They would be the most wonderful students_ , he could tell this much already, and he is more than thrilled to show them the sort of Alchemy he knows, and what more he himself may learn from this world. To decipher and theorize, to create and re-create; in the name of science.

The Fullmetal Alchemist gawked at the Archer, "You actually remember my name!"

"Yes, well, I actually had to _like_ you if you are to earn my respect," Archer said honestly. "You weren't exactly pleasant the first time we met."

"Oh go to hell! You can't blame me for thinking that you guys were going to kidnap me! You're the one who just threw me over your shoulder without telling me what the hell was going on!"

Jeanne watched as Edward began to berate the increasingly amused Archer, a small smile forming, and then a thought came to her. "We should have a name..."

Alphonse was silently observing the scene with equal mirth when he heard Jeanne, "A name?"

The Holy Maiden nodded, "The military has their own group they called the Blue Faction. The group that I'm trying to find is the Red Faction. If we are to declare ourselves as a group of our own, we should have a name that distinguishes us from the rest of the parties."

The Ruler Faction? That certainly was a plausible name, or perhaps the Faction of La Pucelle, though that one sounds rather egotistical, and she is the only one here who is French. She would rather have a name that represents all its members, for her allies to be acknowledged with the same amount of respect. Well then, if the two other factions have a color to their name, then perhaps she should have one for her group as well.

She considered for a moment, all the while Edward was continuously yelling at Archer, and the Servant continuously irking the Fullmetal Alchemist without end. It pushed to the point where Edward threatened to punch Archer and Alphonse had to step in to hold his older brother by the shoulders. Even Caster came to Alphonse's aid, though it was rather telling how he really felt towards the little fiasco with his blissful amused smile. Jeanne looked up to see the commotion, her focus on the angered Edward, his eyes gleaming with emotion.

She hadn't quite thought much about it until now, but Edward's eyes were really quite beautiful, unique. Like gold coins reflecting under the light of the sun, rare flickers like the precious treasures that they were.

She whispered to herself thoughtfully, "How about... The Golden Faction."

 _I like it..._ Rose supported, voicing her opinion in Jeanne's head. Hearing her friend's approval, Jeanne nodded in satisfaction and returned her attention to the team before her, already making themselves quite a lively group.

Her instincts were still prodding at the danger all around her, her worries slowly arose over the trial and obstacles that will undoubtedly wait for them in the future, but at this moment, as she quietly watches the Elric brothers and their Servants, her heart was calmed. This was the right decision, she could feel it.

And she will forever ensure, with every breath she takes, for as long as she remains in this world, she will guide and protect the brothers, and may she forever pray every day for the brothers wishes to come true. She held no favors of those whose wishes are special to each wisher. Every wish, so long as they do not cause harm, are all equally beautiful and meaningful, and she will pray for all of them to come true. Even when the Grail can only allow one, for every wish without malicious intent, Jeanne will pray for every contender's desires to be answered.

But if she were to allow herself a moment of bias, if there is one wish she would like for it to come true above all else, it would be for the Elric brothers to restore their bodies, and live the rest of their days in peaceful happiness.

She will personally see to that before she is to return to her eternal rest.

* * *

 **And so, the neutral faction is formed. The Golden Faction begins their journey. The Grand Holy Grail War has officially commenced.**

 **/.\**

 **A/N: AAAAAND I'm late... Sorry, but here it is! You'll probably won't hear me for another month unless I post my next chapter of another story, so enjoy this long chapter! At least it wasn't over 40,000 words...**

 **Originally I wanted Archer and Caster (Nikola and Paracelsus) to reveal their names to the Elric brothers here, and we get a reaction from Edward and all that, but there was so much already happening in this chapter, I figured I can do it in the next chapter but who knows? I definitely think it would be appropriate for the Servants to properly introduce themselves in the next chapter, let's wait and see if that's what'll actually happen.**

 **Thank you for reading, have a wonderful and blessed day!**


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